Vindictive Hand of Vengeance
by GuardianSoulBlade
Summary: Gwen's life takes a turn for the worse as she is framed for murder and taken to the Null Void. 16 years later she escapes, and will exact her revenge, but at what cost? Now Rated M for adult themes!
1. Darkness

**Vindictive Hand of Vengeance**

_**Summary: **__Gwen's life takes a turn for the worse as she is framed for murder and taken to the Null Void. 16 years later she escapes, and will exact her revenge, but at what cost?_

**Darkness**

Her eyes were set and she stared at the small wall, only a flickering light of a busted bulb to show her the lonely place that was her cell. She turned it off, she was used to the darkness and her eyes weren't accustomed to light anymore.

It had been sixteen years but she'd spent time in a remote branch of Incarcecon, one where no one knew she was a prisoner there. Her name was not registered or on record. She knew she was innocent, but she'd heard that it had been reported that Gwen Tennyson had died while incarcerated, but she'd been moved from the facility where she was officially registered and transferred, but it was all an elaborate scheme to keep her miserable for the rest of her life.

She'd been framed for murder of the local Magister and they said there was even forensic evidence that it was her, her family had all come to her defense but she'd been taken to the Null Void anyway. Ben had done everything he could to try to prove her innocence but nothing could help her. The evidence was too strong. Kevin feverishly investigated every lead he could but they couldn't prove it either, even though they had all been together on the night the Magister died.

Her life had become a living Hell; she'd been beaten and kicked, flogged and tortured. The Incarcecon she had visited with her cousin was one of the "public facilities", and even though they had many high level and dangerous criminals, they were regularly policed by the Plumbers. Her location was less than scrupulous and the warden was corrupt.

Instead of droid guards, he employed any prisoners who could get him criminal connections. She'd been forced to work in the mines as well, even in her terrible condition.

But that wasn't the worst of it; the "guards" were permitted to do anything they wanted to the prisoners shy of murdering them.

It wasn't long before one of them came after her. She'd fought them off as best she could, but they'd eventually overpowered her and…

She shut her eyes tightly. The nightmares, she had to put them out of her mind. The trauma of it all was agonizing. Not only had her life been snatched away from her, her dignity and innocence had been violated and stolen too.

She'd lost 16 years, trying to piece together the puzzle that was her misfortunes and calamities that had become her life.

Her eyes had long since adjusted to the lack of sunlight. But she'd dream about it, and everything she'd lost. But mostly, her dreams were about Kevin, and being with him again, feeling the warmth of his embrace, seeing him smile, hearing his laugh, but every day she would wake and harsh reality would slap her in the face.

She stared down at the sleeping figure in her arms. 15 year old Evan. Her son, conceived in this terrible place, he was born and raised in this darkness. They didn't have blankets, the guards didn't care, up on the higher floors, you were well treated, even went to the rec room to work out or play board games. That was the side that everyone saw, but on the lower floors, you barely got food and never had a blanket. They had to stay close to keep warm. It broke her heart to raise him here, she'd keep him hidden, even carving out a hiding place for him if anyone came in, and his existence had never been found out because they just slipped her food through the door slat and left, she'd managed to share it with him, and they'd lived their miserable lives together for as long as she could think.

The only light he'd known as the harsh glare of bright lights or the pathetic flickering of the small bulb in her cell. He'd never saw the real sunshine, never had pizza, cheeseburgers, birthday cake, candy, chips, junk food, vegetables, all the things children and teens ate.

Never had sleepovers, played videogames, football, basketball or baseball. Never went to the movies or school, everything he'd learned about Earth he'd learned from her. He might have been 15 years old age wise, but he was emotionally young and fragile.

His innocence was gone as well, he'd seen what the guards did to his mother, even though he was safely hidden from them in a space she had dug out with her own hands where he could hide when the guards came into her cell and raped her. There were only two, she'd managed to kill one, the other one had wisely stayed away, gloating that she would never be able to find him, he'd vanished soon after. He was also the man who had "fathered" Evan.

She'd deal with him soon enough. If she could find him.

A few days later, they only gave her food, she had no more "visits" from anyone and that was when she'd put her plan into overdrive. She'd been digging her way out, slowly, because of a restraining collar, she was cut off from her Manna powers, but she still tried her best to escape. She'd been able to calculate the size of the prison and knew she was half way to her goal, but she was desperate, she didn't want to spend 16 more years digging.

Gwen sighed, he was a smart boy, she'd educated him using everything she could remember and he'd learned well, but the Null Void was no place for a child, especially since she kept him hidden from the guards.

He could read, write, articulate and communicate well. If you had found him on the street, you would have thought he was a regular high school student.

But they were both fragile, and she was nearly broken. But only one thing drove her, vengeance, she'd figured out who had put her in this horrible place and they were going to pay. To have everything she'd held dear and taken for granted taken from her was enough to drive her mad, but she'd held onto the hope that she'd see her family again, and Kevin, her sweet Kevin, he was the one other thing besides her son that kept her going.

"Mom," Evan said quietly. "I had a dream about sunshine, and what it will be like when we go home."

"I dream about it too son, soon, we'll get out of here. We'll break out and go home, back to your Uncle Ben and Aunt Julie."

Gwen smiled, she didn't even know if Julie and Ben had gotten married, news wasn't something she heard often and only guessed.

"Grandpa Frank and Grandpa Lilli will be glad to see us, and your Great Grandpa Max will be thrilled to know that he's a great grandfather, they'll welcome us home and will be happy."

"Once we get out of here, everything will be fine," Gwen reassured him.

"I read that book again, I wonder if we'll be able to find anymore," Evan said, books were his escape to the outside world. Since they didn't allow prisoners to have many things to keep them occupied, they had decided books were the only "safe" form of entertainment as they could not be taken apart and rebuilt into something they could use to escape with.

Gwen had managed to get a hold of some books, ranging from the latest books on Earth to the old classics. The one joy she had was teaching him how to read. He always asked what it was that was being described, as he had not seen Earth or anything on Earth except in magazines if they were lucky enough to get them. He could identify things that he'd seen in pictures.

He could name and describe everything about the latest cars without ever having sat in one. He could remember things he'd read about celebrities and movies he'd never seen. Then again, most normal people could do that, but he'd never seen anything in the pictures before. He loved the magazines about nature and the outdoors, because he could imagine himself being in those places.

He wanted to go outside, see the sky, the sun, the stars, go to the beach, build sandcastles and ride a bicycle. All the things he'd dreamed about. But he had to get out of here to do that, so he helped his mother dig.

This facility wasn't metal like the one she'd been to, it was made from the planet's surface and they could tunnel under it. It was a problem to tunnel under the side they wanted to come out of, and she couldn't quite calculate how far it was.

They managed to hit a wall and pushed it open, revealing another cellmate who was surprised to see them.

"Who are you?" Gwen asked; the elderly Anodite was staring at her with haggard eyes.

"Call me Faria. I was put in this place as a career criminal, I robbed so many places you wouldn't believe it."

"I believe it or you wouldn't be here," she smiled.

"Tell me your name," he said smiling.

"My name is Gwen, this is my son Evan."

"You are…Gwen Tennyson," he said in awe. "They said you were dead."

"I'm not, obviously."

"Yes, I can see that, your poor boy probably grew up in this place."

Evan nodded.

"I am sorry; no child should ever have to live here."

He turned to Gwen. "I sensed you; you're one of us Energy Beings. I am glad that I was able to find another Anodite, its lonely here."

"You would make a fine criminal, as backhanded as it sounds, you're so nice you could con and swindle anyone you wanted. You've got a charming way with people and that's a strength that could be useful to people like us."

"What do you mean by that?" Gwen asked.

"It's quite obvious, you've never done anything to deserve being thrown in here, and you're cousin's a hero. I heard until the warden announced that you were dead, he and that boy Kevin were doing whatever they could to prove your innocence and they repeatedly tried to get the verdict overturned."

"You've been put in here 'cause someone wanted you here, have you found out who it is?" he asked. "You're a little naïve but you're very smart and clever. You could have a criminal career that could outshine anyone in here, and you would get away with it too."

"I have a pretty good idea of who it is," she told him. She knew _exactly _who had put her in this place, but she would keep that information to herself. No one need know about it, there were possibly people who knew and it would not be good if her enemy learned that Gwen knew about what they had done to her.

"You just want me to join your gang or whatever? Why show such interest in me?"

"You're a good person and you deserve a good life, besides, you're very savvy and you could help me. I have a fortune scattered all over the galaxy and unfortunately when it comes to Earth wealth I have little, but with a persuasive girl like you, I could get enough money to help you start over, I'm already wealthy on several different planets so I have no need of their currencies, but I don't have good Earth connections and you might help me with that, in exchange I'll help you get back on your feet if you just help me bust out of this place."

"You have a deal, I'm going to find all the people who were behind this and I'm going to make them pay, I'm also going to expose this place for what it is, and everyone here is going to get what they deserve."

"What good would that do?" he asked.

"Imagine if the warden got thrown into his own prison," Gwen said darkly.

"You're not as nice as I was led to believe from what I've heard about you."

"Sixteen years in this hellhole doesn't exactly churn out nice people when they go out. If you help me get out of here, will you help me bring down the Warden, if we can get the Plumbers to investigate this, I assure you we'll never have to worry about him again, especially since my Grandfather is very influential when it comes to the Plumbers."

"There's not a criminal in the galaxy who hasn't heard about the Tennysons. We'll be partners, once this is all over, we can go back to our lives," Faria smiled. With all the wealth he had, he could give up a criminal life and go back to normal. And if Gwen was business savvy, she could double and triple his wealth with no effort.

"If I want revenge, I'll need money, and you can help me with that, and besides, we both want to get out of here. But I'll handle the business side of things; with your reputation people might not believe that you want to become legitimate."

"You were Kevin Levin's girlfriend weren't you?" he asked.

"I was, still am," she said.

"So you know about all his connections," Faria asked. "Levin's got a notorious reputation and if you use that to your advantage, I assure you, people will help you."

"Oh, I will," she said. She'd been planning for years, cooking up a scheme so elaborate that no one would ever see her coming. But to do it she needed money, and an escape plan, neither of which were making any headway.

"I'll help you dig, after all, we want to get out, we'll do as much as we can before lights out. They never bother us, because we're the people they think will never get out."

"Good."

So they began digging and working and Evan learned more, Gwen had taught him everything she knew but Faria knew many things about interplanetary exchanges, currency, trading, smuggling, the black market. Gwen learned as well, she wanted everything she could use to her advantage, knowledge was power, and she intended to use everything to exact her revenge.

A few months later, she asked Faria. "Compared to Kevin, how much do you think I know?"

"Knowing you and how you soak up info like a sponge you'll surpass him in sheer knowledge that's for sure. But can you actually pull off a successful con job?"

"We'll have to see once I get out won't we?" she smiled.

"You scare me, you know that?" he asked.

"Why's that?"

"You could become the galaxy's greatest criminal mastermind if you tried hard enough."

"I don't think I can shoot for aspirations that high."

"You might not, but you'll be awfully close."

Suddenly the wall collapsed. There was shouting, noise and fighting.

"Quick, quick! I have a plan, the disposal container is this way, let's gets in it and hide!" Faria gestured. "They dump the dead bodies in here after breakouts 'cause somebody always dies, then they shoot them off to another planet where the bodies are taken out and identified so they can notify the next of kin."

"How will they not find us? How do you know about this?"

"It's how I've gotten out every time, they still haven't figured it out and that's why they put me down here."

All three of them got in and lay as still as possible. After a long time they felt people being thrown on top of them and watched as the lid was shut. They waited forever and heard people loading them onto a ship.

Once they arrived at the facility, Gwen heard Faria somehow managing to open the lid. He helped them out and they shut and relocked the lid.

"Grab a uniform," Gwen whispered. "Look busy, if they think we work here, they won't notice us; we can say we're new if they ask about us."

"What about the restraining collar?"

"I'll get it off," she reassured them, she found some clothes and put them on, hiding her hair in a ponytail to keep the length hidden. Faria found some tools and helped her remove the collar, she hid it away, she was going to need it as evidence later.

She told Evan to hide in the men's restroom in a stall and lock it and to flush the toilet every once in awhile. Since he knew about lavatories because she'd sneak him out of her cell he knew how they worked.

They pretended to work the rest of the day, mimicking what they saw the other workers doing as they all clocked out, they snuck out the back doors and climbed over the fence. They walked until they found a homeless shelter for aliens, apparently some of Earth's hospitable ways were influencing other systems and they were beginning to help others in similar fashion.

"Aren't you happy Gwen?" Faria asked. "You haven't smiled or laughed once since you got out."

"I will not laugh until I have money, I won't cry until I'm bankrupt," she said. "Nothing will make me happy, not until they all get what they deserve."

"Still thinking about the money, don't worry, once we charter a ship, I'll help you get all the money you could ever dream of."

"I can dream of quite a bit," she said wryly.

"Oh, not this, it's my life's work, money I've set aside from all my jobs, and believe me, I've got a decent amount of Earth money, you should be able use it to help us."

"How much money?"

"A hundred and twenty," he said.

"A hundred and twenty dollars?" she asked. "That's not a lot."

"What I meant to say is that I have a hundred and twenty million American dollars. It's not a lot compared to the amounts I have in other currencies but it's decent."

"Why would you give that to me?"

"We both want payback don't we?"

"Yes, but that's a lot of money."

"If you can pull off the elaborate payback scheme you told me you had, it'll be worth every red cent and you can keep the money."

"I will, I will, and if I play my cards right, I'll pay you back tenfold your investment."

"You can get a billion dollars, if you can do that, I'll be surprised."

"I have connections, I'll use them."

"Mom, look up," Evan said. "Those are stars, aren't they?"

"Yeah, Evan, they are," she replied, hugging him.

"I always knew that the outside was beautiful," he sighed.

"It is, son. It is, and now we're free of that place. We won't ever go back there."

_Not as prisoners anyway._

She was free, but her thirst for vengeance was hardly sated, she was just getting started and everything would go just as she'd planned it for sixteen years.


	2. Ambition

**Ambitions**

"Here, it's yogurt," Gwen handed him the container. Evan took it and clumsily used the spoon to eat the strange concoction. It tasted good and he ended up liking it.

Evan was in awe at the outside world. Pictures could not do the world justice. It took him awhile to not gape at everything he saw. It was one thing to read something in a book, it was another thing to see, feel and touch it.

He enjoyed life; everything was a new experience for him. He had never known the joy of being able to eat as much as he wanted until he was full. He could come and go as he pleased, and the world was beautiful. He just wished he didn't feel so naïve and not know about music, movies, and pop culture. He felt so out of place in a world that he could mentally understand but not quite cope with.

He felt socially inept, awkward, not so much around the adults, although they did intimidate them. He tried really hard to get along with young people his own age and it was hard. He seemed to be doing well.

He knew of his mother's plans for revenge on the people who had made them suffer. Evan longed to help her but she insisted that he stay out of it and have a happy life and enjoy it.

Evan sighed, he pretended to be busy watching TV while he eavesdropped on his mother's conversation.

Gwen had been busy, she'd started the Dollars simply enough. She'd managed to pull off small successful con jobs, slowly taking money from other criminals and investing it in very lucrative businesses. She'd been getting a business degree in college and although she'd never held that diploma, she'd more than well earned it.

She'd gained a lot of knowledge while in prison, learning what she could from Faria but also from first hand experiences, she'd almost been killed a few times when deals fell apart, but she managed to escape. No longer concerned with whether or not she hurt her enemies, she was ruthless in fights, but she never killed, not out of a sense of morality, but because there were things that were so much worse than dying, and she knew that from her own experience.

What disturbed her most was that throughout all her meetings, not once had a Plumber shown up to stop the transaction, no fighting with them or trying to escape being caught.

She knew Ben and Kevin were busy battling supervillains, but she knew that there were more than enough Plumbers to break up all of her activities, she'd heard that some of Grandpa Max's Plumbers were disrupting her business, but she expected that, but she also expected more than just her old associates to be actively engaged in stopping her efforts.

It sickened her how easy it was to bribe the Plumbers, she'd paid off several off them to turn a blind eye as a test, when she had been a member of the organization, it had been a shining beacon of hope, a place where all alien species could turn to for help, not only in intergalactic negotiations, but they genuinely cared about the people they were helping. The standards were higher back then, and corruption was despised.

Now it was embraced, very few of this new, self-indulgent generation of Plumber's kids actually cared about protecting the galaxy. It was a badge of prestige, bragging rights, a pleasure-seeking farce of an organization. The only ones who truly cared were her friends and family.

She'd heard Grandpa Max was so disgusted with the corruption that he quit, he had tried to prove what he suspected ever since she'd been put into the Null Void but he couldn't.

It took her one year, she'd carved out a place for herself in the criminal underworld, using all her Plumber's knowledge and Kevin's connections, she'd gained control in almost every aspect of the alien tech black market, she used her power to its fullest extent and soon criminals were practically begging her for a piece of the cut.

A familiar face sat before her, apparently it had been a long time since he'd seen her and Argit was being his typical swindling self, trying to eke out as much money from her as he could.

"You know Kevin Levin?" the alien asked skeptically.

"I can contact him easily," Gwen said smoothly, which was the truth, she knew someone who could get a hold of him, she could never let him know she was alive, not yet, if he knew he might tell Ben and she did not want her cousin interfering with her plans, as much as she wanted to see them both again, with what she was going to do, they would definitely try to talk her out of it or stop her.

"Well lady, Kevin's name can get thrown around a lot, tell me something only someone who knows him would know about him."

"His middle name is Ethan," she smirked.

"So you do _know _him, were you one of his girlfriends?" Argit taunted.

Gwen felt the need to strangle him, she just might decide to change it up for once and kill him for real; he was getting a little too close to the truth. Fortunately, one of her men put the butt of a gun in his face.

"It's not idea to taunt the Boss. She built the Dollars from nothing and now she's practically running the alien black market. Best to stay in God's good graces if you want to live and do business with us."

"You call her God, what kind of nickname is that?" Argit scoffed.

"I have vast wealth on several planets, I've purchased my way into all avenues of business, both legit and illegal, I can find out anything I want and if you cross me, Argit, I won't kill you, but I'll make your life so bad you'll never be able to sell any of your precious black market wares anywhere in the entire galaxy."

He gasped; _she _had that kind of power? But what kind of criminal organization was this? Anything he'd learned about the Dollars he knew that they _funded _many law enforcement agencies, helped bust criminals and steadily filled the local Incarcecons.

"Oh, don't for one second think that we're not a criminal enterprise, I sell weapons, illegal goods contraband, you name it, but no drugs, no human or alien trafficking, I'll happily confiscate drug money and make good use of it and any other funds I can get a hold of."

"I see where the nickname comes from," he gulped. "Let's talk business, I've got some Taedenite." He felt the urge to hurry up and get out of there.

"Relax Argit, we're not in a hurry, there is an old saying you know, haste is a poor counselor."

"You want something to eat?" she offered amiably. Argit was a little taken aback, this girl seemed way too nice to be the head of the Dollars, but her connections and extravagantly deep pockets; she wore nice clothes. She was very good looking, but she wasn't a gorgeous, plastic surgery model, it wasn't so much her looks as much as it was the way she carried herself and her confidence and charisma and had a commanding presence that drew people to her.

Gwen called to her butler. "I am hungry, feed me." He left to get something for her to eat. He came back with some chips from a vending machine and a smoothie.

To Argit, she said, "I am bored, amuse me. What's your proposal?"

"I've got a deal, if I sell it to you, I've heard you've got bottomless pockets and access to research facilities, I've heard you're looking into mass producing very rare technology, if you could mass produce Taedenite, we could make a killing."

"The Dollars are more than willing to help you in your enterprises, but if you want my financial backing you'll have to do something for me."

"Depends on what it is," Argit said. "I can pull a lot of strings."

"Sounds promising," Gwen smiled.

"Come now, beautiful, what's your name?" Argit asked. This lady felt familiar but he had no idea why. As long as she got him good deals what did he care?

"My name isn't important Argit, what matters is this deal. Tell me, can you arrange a deal with Warden Morgg?"

"I'll see what I can do, I'll try my best to set up a meeting with Warden Morgg, it may be a while though."

"I'll have my men contact you in a few days," she informed him.

"But how will you contact me?" Argit inquired.

"Don't worry about it. Just bring me what I want."

He scampered off and Gwen watched him leave. She sat down at her computer as her thoughts drifted as they usually did, to Kevin Levin.

She knew everything about his life since she'd gone to prison, he'd tried his best to prove her innocence but when he heard she had died, he had been devastated. That was when her enemy had moved in and comforted him, seduced him, married him and given him a son that should have been hers before promptly divorcing him and taking most of his money. He was living decently, with his fame and heroism still at the forefront he had a good life, but he hadn't remarried again.

It made her sad in a way, Gwen almost wished he had remarried; it wasn't fair for him to be a single father.

She wasn't petty, the whole "I hate you because you married my enemy" was beneath her, she might hate the one that put her in prison, but Kevin was not to blame and he was just caught in the middle.

She was able to pull up some information on him.

Gwen looked at his picture and smiled. Still as handsome as ever. He had a son Devlin, who was the image of his father and they would often help Ben when villains flared their ugly heads now and then. She wondered if he was happy with his life. She noticed he had an X-shaped scar on his chin and wondered where it came from. He also sported a leather outfit these days. It was _interesting_ to say the least.

Gwen clutched her pelvis as pain shot through her. She fumbled for the anti-inflammatory medication; she should have taken it earlier. The pain was a side effect of the many times she'd been raped and it tended to hit her at the most inconvenient times. She'd gone to the doctor and gotten some inflammatory medication and it had helped ease the pain.

If that wasn't bad enough, between the insomnia and lucid dreams, she was miserable. She took sleeping pills if she couldn't sleep and tried to stay up if she kept having nightmares. Piecing her life back together wasn't easy and she was doing the best she could.

If only she could find a way to cope, she wanted desperately to feel "normal" again, but that was not going to happen anytime soon.

"Mom, are you okay?" Evan asked.

"I'll be fine, it'll pass," she told him. "You eavesdropped, didn't you?"

"I want to help, Mom, but you won't let me," her son scowled.

"I want you to have a good life, what I'm going to do is too deep and dangerous for you."

"But you've taught me how to fight; I should be able to help!"

"No! I don't want you to be hurt. You will _not_ get involved in my affairs! Do you understand me Evan Lee Tennyson?"

"Yes Mom," he grumbled. He walked away.

Gwen knew that this was not the last time they were going to have this discussion, but for now he was doing as he was told. She sighed and told him she had to take care of some things and that he had to study. They would be moving to Bellwood where he would transfer to the High School. He was a good student, and he paid attention, but he probably wouldn't adjust well to a place like her old preppy high school.

He was a little nervous, he wasn't sure how well he'd fit in. Still he was hopeful that he would be able to make some friends. He just wanted to live a normal life.

He sighed; everything that had happened was not fair.

_Three days later…_

Gwen splashed some water on her face, wiping away the makeup and stared at her reflection. She was still the same as always, except for the scars. She tried her best to put her misery out of her mind. She saw there was an unexpected visitor looking at her, it seemed Argit had discovered her secret and she knew he was going to sell her out to the highest bidder, she couldn't have that, she didn't want to involve Ben and Kevin, she'd have to put him in a place where they would shut him up.

It had taken time but Argit had managed to get a meeting set up between the Dollars and Warden Morrg. It would be done through someone else though, only if she was particularly interested in you did she ever set up a face to face meeting with you. He had received his payment, but he had decided to see if he could have a little extra as a finder's fee.

"I can't believe it!" Argit gasped in shock, he recognized her. It was the Tennyson girl, Ben's cousin, he couldn't quite recall her name, but it was her. How was she really alive? He'd heard she died in an Incarcecon after murdering a Magister.

He gaped in shock as he saw the hideous scar that ran vertically up the left side of her face and across her eyes in a slant. It wasn't one of those straight, neat thin scars that you saw in the movies where it didn't really impair one's good looks, the wound looked like someone had sewn her face back together after it had been ripped apart.

Gwen always told people that looks didn't matter, but it was hard for her to stare at her own reflection, eventually, she'd come to terms with it and had accepted it as part of who she was.

Not that she couldn't get her face fixed with all the money, a surgery might have made it look better, but she needed proof of her suffering and torment and it was going to be very hard for her enemies to convince others she was lying if they saw her with a normal looking face.

After she finished the first phase of her revenge, she'd try to get some surgery and at least try to make the scars look less noticeable. The thing that bothered her the most was the fact that her face felt numb. If it wasn't numb, sensations and feeling felt distant whenever something touched her face and her nerves felt dull*****.

"She does know how to wear makeup," he muttered. She'd done such a good job covering it up that he hadn't even seen it until then when she washed her face.

This news was too good to be true; he could make a fortune off this information if he could sell it to the right person, Kevin Levin. Yeah, his former associate would be thrilled to find out the whereabouts of his girlfriend, he'd make a killing off this information; he could sell it to her enemies for a tidy profit.

"This is the best discovery I've had all day! Imagine all the money I can make from this!" he whispered excitedly.

"You'd do something like that wouldn't you Argit?" Gwen said, turning slowly, a smile on her face.

He gasped, how had she known he was there? Suddenly, he was surrounded by her guards, they all had weapons and he began running as fast as he could go. He found himself surrounded by a field of pink energy and he began shooting his spikes at it. He recalled Gwen's Manna based attacks and remembered that it only took a few good hits to break them. But to his surprise and horror, the barriers held steady and he couldn't escape.

"You won't be going anywhere Argit; my boys will take you to the Plumbers."

"But won't they arrest them?" he asked.

"No one can touch me, not even the Plumbers," she gave him a smile. "Get him out of here."

It was the truth, she'd bribed so many of them that they were only pretending to fight her activities while willingly participating in them.

Argit had never thought that Gwen's pretty smile could be so wickedly sinister. He would never cross her again, for once he was thankful that he had always managed to swindle Kevin, if the roles had been reversed and she'd been a career criminal, no doubt he would be dead.

* * *

Benjamin Tennyson, "Ben 10,000" had Argit escorted to the Null Void. His best friend and his cousin's former fiancée Kevin Levin was with him.

"Heard the Dollars dropped him off here," Kevin told him.

"I know, and what amazes me is we can't touch them. We can't even get the identity of the boss of this organization." Ben was disturbed. Whoever this person was they knew plenty of things about both the Plumbers and the black market, but unlike when he had deduced Michael Morningstar's motives and actions, he couldn't find a common link or clue to who the leader of the Dollars was. Whoever it was did _not_ have a personal grudge against him, Kevin or the Plumbers, and that was a surprise.

Kevin looked thoughtful.

"All my old associates don't even know where the Dollars came from; it just appeared and started buying up everything. Whoever's pulling the strings is really smart. They've got black market deals all over the place and yet no one can touch them. They've got people everywhere and everyone is afraid of whoever the man behind the curtain is."

Kevin was stumped, even though he was a hero and famous, he still kept tabs on people from his dubious past, and yet this person, whoever he was, had not directly approached him. It was always through someone else, and Ben had told him to play along, hoping to gather information, it didn't work. They hid themselves very well and it was becoming apparent that they were unstoppable.

"Whoever is doing all this, they have a lot of confidence that we can't get them," Kevin furrowed his brow. "They're really good at not letting their true identity be known."

"Either that or they're really scared of this person, they know how to intimidate people," observed the brown-haired hero. "You were a criminal, you've seen a lot of things, if somebody has a lot of power and influence and you can get away with just about anything."

"Yes, but what's the big scheme? You'd think they'd come after us, take our families jobs, run us ragged with supervillains, all the typical villainy."

"It's really funny to hear you say something like that Kevin," Ben smiled.

"You want my advice or what?"

"Of course, your input might blow this conspiracy wide open."

"If we had more time to investigate, we could actually learn something," Ben frowned. "It's a shame we can't even trust anyone in the Plumbers anymore, at least, not besides our friends."

"Don't we need to go inside?" Ben asked, "I'm going to follow up a lead on Michael Morningstar."

"I'll come in too," Kevin followed him inside. "I want to talk to that old rat. He gave me a false lead."

A group of inmates gathered around the old con artist. These were _not_ the people he wanted to see right now. Maybe he could use his new found information to his advantage.

"Listen, fellas," Argit said nervously, "I've got some really juicy info for ya, the head of the Dollars is Gwen Tennyson, she's the one who's been running the black market."

The inmates smiled at him. "You mean Ben Tennyson's nice, sweet, pretty cousin?"

"I know it's crazy but it's true!" he exclaimed.

The older alien Quince smiled. "Of course we know that, she's our friend, very few of us have actually met her, but we all know the stories about what happened to her in here, besides, she's been running my business until I get out, isn't that right boys?"

They nodded, "She's keeping my family financially stable and offered me a job in her organization when I get out, I'll be set for life."

"She— she bought all you guys?" Argit asked. He was terrified, even in the Incarcecon, she held power. _Everyone _was on her side. What were they going to do to him now that he knew her secret?

"Her identity is hardly a secret, everyone in the galactic underworld knows about her, and they call her God 'cause if you ever tell her secret, you'll wish you were dead, she knows how to crush a person without ever killing them, and that's far worse than her putting out a hit on you."

"You can't tell anyone, not that they'd believe you if you went to the Plumbers 'cause everyone in the Plumbers thinks she's dead and they all saw the body in the casket, and if you showed them a picture, they'd think it's fake, so you can't do anything with this information, it's worthless to sell it and will give you no advantage on either side of the law."

"What about Kevin, surely he'd wanna know about his girlfriend right?"

"Levin's not a criminal anymore, not like you'd willingly give him this information, and why would he believe you, you're a con man."

"But I—" Argit protested.

"Just shut up! We won't let you hurt her. She's one of us, and that's what counts."

"What are you guys gonna do to me?" he asked.

"We're gonna beat the crap out of you for trying to ruin the only person who's ever given a crap about scum like us." They moved toward him menacingly.

"Oh boy," Argit gulped.

Gwen watched as Argit was viciously beaten by his fellow inmates. If there was anything she knew about the world it was that having lots of friends and being shrewd paid off. The whole loner criminal cliché was something that was portrayed in big budget Hollywood blockbusters, but in real life, many criminal organizations were strong because of vast networking and connections.

Many powerful people were doing business with her, the Forever Knights, and many other criminal organizations were at her beckon call for anything she might need. Even Patrick the Forever King was impressed.

She was sitting at a desk, speaking to Patrick on a live feed from Skype on her laptop.

During a meeting, he had learned that her identity was no secret. "Why would you do all this? With your well known stances on right and wrong and justice? You who so willingly aided your cousin in saving the world would now become a criminal."

"The justice that my cousin and I fought for doesn't exist; if it did then I would have had a happy good life with the people I love, not locked away in a hellhole. Even someone like you would understand the concept of revenge."

"I know the concept well," Patrick smiled. "I wanted revenge on you and your friends once."

"But even you can't touch me, besides; I don't have any problem or quarrel with you."

"So you think, Tennyson," Patrick said coolly.

"Is that a threat?" she countered. The look in her eyes actually made his blood run cold. He couldn't help but admire her; there was something truly horrifying when someone who was so beautiful and good took the darker path in life. Perhaps it was her goodness that made her terrifying, the fact that no one could ever see her as a person who could commit crimes without batting an eye, who could extort and intimidate like any lifetime criminal. To know that she had been a hero and a defender of justice was far worse than Kevin who had always been volatile and in the moral gray area. It had taken Levin years to reform, but Gwen slid so easily into the shady darker world, it was amazing, she wore both masks with ease and the fact that she was so friendly made her sinister side a true work of art.

She reminded him of all the people he'd ever seen on a serial killer documentary, they always said, "They were nice and friendly, had a family, didn't think they could do that."

She was a piece of work, he admitted that.

Over the course of the last year, several groups had tried to kill her. It hadn't worked, every one of the assassins were caught and instead of being killed as retaliation they were thrown into the Null Void, and made to suffer cruelties that would terrify anyone who heard about it. She was right, she was untouchable for now, he'd bide his time, perhaps this alliance would be fruitful.

"We look forward to doing business with you," he said smoothly, "I apologize for my comment earlier. I didn't mean to insult you."

"Of course," she told him in a tone of voice that said she didn't believe a word of it. "You sure do know how to flatter a girl."

"I do hope you'll consider and accept our offer," Patrick said.

"I'll let you know once I think it over," Gwen ended the conversation with him and shut off the laptop. Faria had gone to finish some business for her and he had just returned with the car.

"Faria, how far are we along in acquiring Morgg's finances?" she asked.

"We're working on purchasing all the banks where he has funds."

"Good," Gwen said. "Buy it if possible, if not blackmail and bribe our way in." Morgg was once Warden of the Incarcecon where Kevin had been imprisoned, she and Ben had discovered he was dealing in intergalactic drug trading and had him put inside the very place had had guarded. He had managed to bribe his way out and had taken up being the Warden of the Incarcecon where she had been transferred to, he was one of the few people who knew she had been alive and had made her life miserable.

"Of course Ma'am," Faria nodded. They had become close friends, and he'd become like another grandfather to her. He'd also become her personal butler and confidant and was the only one besides her son who knew what she intended to do with her vast wealth and power.

Warden Morgg was away, but she'd come in disguise anyway, so no one might recognize her. She'd steadily won the hearts of the prisoners, getting them contraband, getting messages to their families, helping them financially, promising to run their enterprises for them until they were released. She'd shocked them when she'd actually come through on all her promises and they eagerly swore loyalty to her, as they were used to the backstabbing, power hungry types, they were astonished by her sincerity, but they knew that if they lied to her, if they deceived her in anyway, she made sure that they were ruined, not their families, but their criminal enterprises, she'd buy them out or fold them so that they had no bartering tools while incarcerated. Even her enemies knew when they were beaten and they moved onto other avenues of the criminal market where they knew she would not involve herself.

"You have been reading, I see," he smiled. "Let's leave now, don't you have an appointment?"

"Yes, I believe I do," Gwen put her book away. She'd bought another copy, _The Count of Monte Cristo_ was a classic work, but it also had one of the most elaborate revenge plots ever written and it was her blueprint, all her plans were inside that book and if you wanted to stop her, her schemes available on sale for $10.20 online, how ironic. Dumas would be proud of her.

Of all the classic literature that had been written, this was her favorite story. It had intrigue, revenge, psychological twists and turns and was a fascinating story. She'd even written a brilliant paper on it when she was in college, she'd been about to graduate when she was thrown into the Null Void.

"I'll be waiting for you outside," she moved to leave the building. Suddenly the door opened and Kevin and Ben walked in.

Gwen felt her heart stop, she might have dyed her hair, changed her eye color with contacts but there was one thing that gave her away, her aura, Ben was part Anodite as well, but he did not have "The Spark" that enabled him to have powers similar to her own, but they had always been close, what if he saw through her disguise? She wore heavy makeup to hide her scars but Ben might recognize her. There was always that possibility.

It had been sixteen years and her appearance had changed, she was still beautiful, but terribly scarred from her torment in prison and she'd lost weight and was trying to regain her health as best she could.

Her heart longed to call to them, say their names and pull them into embraces that would last forever. Her cousin, her obnoxious, annoying, bull-headed cousin who she had always been close to was right there and he was talking to Kevin.

Her sweet, roguish Kevin, the only man that she had ever loved; the one image and thought that had brought her through sixteen years was there, just steps away from being in her arms, her lips on his.

She clenched her eyes shut for a second and drove all thoughts of reunion from her mind. It wasn't time yet.

Gwen also knew that Kevin might be able to sense her, as he had drained her energy long ago and she knew that he might realize it was her. As long as she didn't acknowledge them or speak she get by them, she didn't want them interfering, not yet.

The walk toward the door might as well have been a marathon, she moved confidently, trying to look like she didn't know them, she edged her way passed them, accidentally brushing Kevin's shoulder.

"Sorry," she apologized quickly.

Kevin felt it; a vague flicker of energy, but not just any energy, Manna, the aura was familiar. Ben saw him stop, he did as well and they looked back, but by the time they did, the figure had vanished from their sight.

"Who was that?" Ben asked.

"I don't know, but it felt awfully familiar," Kevin frowned. He saw guards carrying Argit out on a stretcher.

"I wonder what happened to him," Ben sighed.

"Probably ticked off somebody, he tends to do that," Kevin scowled.

"I have to go check on some things, wait here, will ya?" Ben asked. He walked off.

Kevin searched until he found Argit in the infirmary.

"What'd you do this time Argit?" Kevin smirked.

The porcupine like alien glanced at him and tried to say something.

"Sorry, can't hear you," Kevin began walking away. "Not like it matters anyway."

Kevin rejoined Ben.

"Did you find out anything about Michael Morningstar?" Kevin asked.

"Nothing, he's not been spotted anywhere for awhile."

"We'll find him; he escaped us awhile back, but not next time."

They left; it was time to get back to work. Dr. Animo had broken out of the Null Void again.

Gwen got into the back of her car as Faria began to drive away. She looked at the page she'd been reading and recited it from memory.

"And now, farewell to kindness, humanity and gratitude. I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good; may the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked."

**Author's Note: **_Yes, I am reading The Count of Monte Cristo for fun. And yes, it is awesome for a really old book. _

_Please tell me if Evan starts derailing into Marty Stu territory, I'm desperately to avoid it._

_*** **__I have scars on my legs, they are numb and I can feel a little bit, but they always feel cold because of scar tissue. It's from muscle release surgery I had ages ago._

_This chapter is a big "take that" to all the "Insert character's name is raped and there are no side effects" fics that float around on this site. People wouldn't hate these types of things for the subject matter as much as it is the fact that writers tend to write unrealistically said victim's reaction to what happened._


	3. Masquerade

**Masq****uerade **

_**Author's Note:** Changed the name of the criminal gang to the Dollars, because Durarara! is awesome! _

The smile on her face was warm and inviting. It was a welcoming party. The company Gard Enterprises had come to Bellwood. Offering jobs and career opportunities, they were promising to revitalize the economy. Then again, that was the promise everyone was making.

Ben was invited, along with Kevin and Julie. The boys decided to stay at Ben's house overnight as a sleepover.

Ben was wondering around greeting the guests when he spotted Gwen. She was standing by a table sipping champagne.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Ben fumbled mentally, trying to remember her name.

"Guinevere Dantes," she smiled evenly.

"Guinevere, hmm," Ben was amused.

"What's so funny?" Gwen inquired.

"You're name reminds me of my cousin, her name was Gwen."

"What happened to her? You haven't introduced me."

"She died a long time ago."

"Oh, I'm sorry for your loss."

"You remind me of her," Ben said. She felt familiar to him and he excused himself to mingle with the guests.

"I am sure that within a month, you will not even remember my name." Gwen left him to his business and went about talking with the others.

Kevin was wandering through the crowd when he spotted a familiar face.

"Charmcaster," Kevin growled.

"Hello Kevin," she sneered. "I wonder how you got into this place. Since you're nearly broke, you can barely afford to be here."

"You're just here to see if you can find another guy to get into their pants!"

"You're just angry because I was able to get a rather large settlement out of you, it's not just sex; I want money too."

"You make me sick!" Kevin started yelling. "Just leave me alone!"

"Then why'd you marry me?" she sneered.

Gwen made her way towards them. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I was just leaving," Charmcaster scowled. She had better things to do than deal with her ex husband.

"May I steal your ex?" Gwen inquired slyly, resisting the urge to smirk at her enemy. Charmcaster had murdered the Magister and framed Gwen for it, with the help of Warden Morrg; they had taken everything from her.

Gwen was mentally relishing the idea of wringing Charmcaster's neck and snapping it in half, as pleasant as the thought sounded, it wasn't really practical.

"Like I care," Charmcaster stomped off. Gwen moved to speak to Kevin.

Suddenly a song came on, Gwen recognized the jazz piece. It was the one that she and Kevin danced to in the junkyard after they missed her school dance.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked.

Kevin Levin was staring at her, his hand outstretched to hers. He was smiling and was just as she remembered. She flinched visibly, causing him to frown.

"Are you alright?" Kevin asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," she replied, even though she was extremely nervous.

"Would you like to dance?" he repeated his inquiry.

Gwen had to think quickly. If she said no, it might make him suspicious, but he might recognize her if she spent time with him. She made her decision.

"Yes," she said calmly. He didn't recognize her. The confidence she had possessed long ago with still there, but all the promise and looking forward to the future and the optimism she had always shown had disappeared.

They continued to dance in the room to the pleasant music.

"You're beautiful," Kevin murmured. Why did she feel so familiar? He felt comfortable in her presence and it made him feel at ease among all these rich and powerful individuals.

"How many girls have you said that to?" she inquired.

"Not many," he replied.

The song ended and they parted. Kevin didn't want her to go, he didn't know why but he wanted her to stay.

"I have to be going," she told him; Gwen didn't want to stay with him too long, the temptation to reveal her identity to him would be too much for her to handle.

Gwen watched the party go on and she excused herself, leaving quietly, she entered the limo.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Faria inquired. He'd watched her from the afar as he always did.

"Does it matter if I did?" Gwen asked.

"You enjoyed being with him. For once you seemed…happy."

"Why should I be happy? I lost 16 years of my life, I've suffered pain and agony and torture. When I have my revenge, then I'll be happy."

"Just don't lose your purpose; you remember what happened to Edmond Dantes."

"Of course, I read that book, over and over. He went too far, I won't."

"Shall we go home?" the old Anodite queried.

"No, I have a meeting; Morrg said he's interested in business with me."

"What about your vengeance plans? Are you going to take it now? It's a perfect opportunity. We can kill him."

"No, no. That's too easy. I want to expose the truth about him, humiliate him and send him to my old cell in his Incarcecon."

"But how do you intend to do that?"

"I have a plan, but I won't be able to carry it out for a little while. Until then I'll happily take his money."

They drove to an abandoned warehouse. She got out of her car and entered the building.

Gwen entered, but remained hidden in the darkness. Faria approached him and smiled.

"I assume you remember me, Morrg," he said.

"Yes, of course, but you're not the one I'm interested in meeting, I want to talk to the leader of the Dollars."

Gwen smiled. "Hello, Morrg, I've wanted to meet you for a long time."

There was a loud noise and a crash through the skylight. She saw Ben and Kevin land in the middle of the room. Morrg took off running. This wasn't good. She was in the room with the two of them. This was not a good thing at all.

* * *

Kevin saw his Plumber's badge and saw it blinking. Ben stared at him. "Looks like the Dollars are nearby, heard a rumor about a meeting tonight."

"I got it from a good source that the leader himself is supposed to be there," Kevin told him. "I heard the boss doesn't often interact with his clients. He'll only come out if he's really interested in you."

Kevin and Ben drove toward the location and parked several blocks away so their targets would not suspect that they were being followed. They crept toward the building and snuck up onto the rooftop and peered through the skylight.

"_I assume you remember me, Morrg." _

"_Yes, of course, but you're not the one I'm interested in meeting, I want to talk to the leader of the Dollars."_

"_Hello, Morrg, I've wanted to meet you for a long time."_

The two boys jumped into the building through the glass and landed on their feet.

"So you're him, are you?" Ben asked.

"So what if I am?" the voice asked.

"The leader of the Dollars is a woman?" Kevin stared.

"Yes, and you two aren't going to stop me," Gwen told them, she kept her voice low so she couldn't be recognized. She had to stay in the darkness so they wouldn't recognize her.

"We'll see about that!" Ben slammed his hand down and transformed into Spider-Monkey.

He shot out a spray of webbing at her, but Gwen somersaulted backwards and avoided it. She knew she wouldn't be able to use her powers; it would be a dead giveaway. Sure Anodites were plenty, but her fighting techniques were something they could recognize.

"Get back here!" Kevin snarled. He rushed forward and struck at the person he couldn't see.

Blows were exchanged, Kevin was impressed, he hadn't fought a normal human in some time and it was a surprise that his opponent could fight him off.

Gwen easily avoided Ben's web attack and he moved to engage her, she managed to fight them off easily. She'd been honing her martial arts skill during the past year, refreshing her memory and since she knew how they fought it made it easier for her to counter them without using any of her powers.

Both boys moved, Ben managed to catch her wrist with his web as Kevin moved to kick her, somehow she managed to jump up and pull Ben off his feet and swing him into the nearest wall as she solidly kicked her former fiancé in the face. She'd apologize for that later, but she didn't have time to deal with them now.

Kevin looked over and saw the vending machine. There was only one thing to do. He picked it up and launched it at her. Nobody could block an oncoming vending machine.

"What the—!" Gwen exclaimed. It wasn't every day you saw a vending machine come flying at you.

She stopped and turned quickly. She managed to catch the vending machine, no small feat, and set it down. Kevin's mouth fell open, who could manage to _catch_ that?

She bolted toward the door, her legs moved as fast as they could go; both boys were scrambling to her feet as she vanished into the night. Her business was concluded for now and she would deal with Morrg later.

Kevin began his pursuit, sprinting after the figure that was almost a small dot in the distance, but he wasn't going to give up. He continued running but jumped in his car and began following, he drove after her.

Gwen could see him and headed off into the wooded area nearby. Through the trees she sprinted away. Kevin barreled after her leaving his car to give chase.

The Osmosian tackled her to the ground. He thought maybe he could pin her down, but Gwen outmaneuvered him and pinned him down instead.

"You!" Kevin exclaimed, recognizing her.

"So, who captured whom? Hmm?" Gwen asked teasingly.

"What are you doing? Get off me!"

"But I didn't think a guy like you would mind."

"I'm not a pervert, get off me! I don't know what you're trying to do but it's not going to work."

"You don't want me?" Gwen asked, trying to keep the serious tone out of her voice, she was only teasing him, but part of her missed him.

"I've only ever loved one woman, and she's dead."

"Really?" she asked.

"Just get off me; I'm going to turn you into the Plumbers."

"Not today, Kevin, not today," Gwen whispered, she bent down and kissed him deeply, passionately, she'd missed him so much, she couldn't help it.

Kevin was shocked by this, what was she doing? He didn't know her and she certainly didn't know him. His lips moved with hers as he began to respond and felt a painful shock hit him as she tasered him in the back.

"Sorry, Kevin, but I can't let you and Ben stop me."

His eyes shut as he blacked out. A few minutes later, he felt someone shaking his shoulder.

"Kevin! Kevin, wake up!" Ben said.

"Oh, I don't feel very well. Everything hurts," he looked around. "Did you find her?"

"Nope, I didn't see anyone here. How did she manage to knock you out?"

"She kissed me," Kevin admitted sheepishly. He hated to admit that he'd enjoyed it too.

"Figures that would happen to you," Ben said. He stared at Kevin, who had a strange expression on his face.

"It's almost like I knew her, everything about her seems familiar, but I don't know why."

"We're going to catch her," Ben smiled. "It's been a long time since we faced someone who could really give us a run for our money. This was becoming very interesting.

Evan stepped into the halls of Bellwood High School with a nervous look on his face. He was the new kid. He was also being touted as the rich kid, from what he could tell. And here he was hoping to make a good impression.

"This is Evan Dantes, he moved here recently, make him feel welcome," the teacher said.

Evan took a seat and smiled nervously.

He took a seat beside a young boy with brown hair and green eyes.

"You're the new guy, uh Evan right?" the boy asked.

"Yeah, what's your name?" Evan asked.

"I'm Kenny," the boy introduced himself. "Kenny Tennyson."

"Ben 10,000's son? I saw you on the mega screen. I admire your work. It's pretty cool. Not everyone fights monsters for a job."

"Thanks, but it's what I have to do, someone has to help my dad since my aunt well, she's dead now. I thought I should help since she's not here."

"That's nice, I'm sorry about your Aunt," Evan smiled. His mother was obviously very close to her family. Even though he wanted to tell him that he was family, why would Kenny believe him? It wouldn't help matters to reveal his identity, because then he would start asking about his mother and find out about the Dollars. And his mother had told him not to interfere with her plans.

"You seem like a nice guy, how 'bout me and Devlin show you around."

"Who's that?" Evan asked.

"He's Kevin Levin's son," Kenny explained.

_In another life, we would have been brothers, _Evan smiled at Devlin and the three boys began to talk about typical things they enjoyed, videogames, movies and everything else.

"Why don't you come over to my house?" Devlin asked.

"You sure that's okay?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, Dad doesn't care if I bring friends over."

"Okay," Evan followed Devin home. He was nervous. His mother had told him many things about Kevin Levin, but what was he like in person?

Arriving at the modest sized house, Devlin was surprised to see his father was home.

"Who is this?" Kevin asked.

"Evan Dantes, new kid from school," Devlin replied.

"Oh, I think I met your mother once," Kevin smiled.

"Where?" Evan asked.

"At a fancy dinner," Kevin turned his attention to his computer. He was trying to investigate the Dollars, but he wasn't having much luck.

He watched as Evan, Devlin and Kenny talked, laughed and played games and did homework the rest of the afternoon.

"I have to go home now," Evan told Kevin, "It was nice to meet you Kevin."

"Please come again, I think Devlin would like that."

"Yeah, you do that!" Devlin shouted from the kitchen where he was doing his homework.

Evan waved goodbye and drove home. His mother was waiting for him.

"You went to see him," Gwen said simply.

Evan didn't say anything.

"Don't tell him about me."

"Why not? Wouldn't you want to tell him you're alive?" Evan asked.

"I told you before, don't interfere with my plans, that includes telling Kevin who I am. Just make friends with Kenny and Devlin. And don't think I don't know you've been looking for Michael Morningstar; you stay away from him too. I don't want you to get hurt involving yourself in this."

Evan didn't say a word. His mind was made up. He was going to do what he felt was right, no matter what his mother said. He turned and went to his room.

Gwen sighed, she knew her son was going to do what he wanted, and he was definitely going to search for Morningstar, no matter how much she forbade him. She was going to have to have a backup plan since he was going to do something stupid.

She sighed; it was going to be a long time before their lives resembled any form of normalcy.

It was the next day and Kevin was busy working at his car repair shop. He'd gotten back to work and he had managed to earn enough money to start his own shop. Business was going well and he was financially stable.

He was surprise that the Dollars had not bought him out. The Dollars had bought up many businesses in Bellwood. It shocked him most of all when he learned that they had bought up Mr. Smoothies! The old franchise had been about to close when Gard Enterprises purchased it. He'd been able to learn that Gard Enterprise was a front for the Dollars.

That lady Guinevere Dantes, he had tried his best to investigate her, but so far, she was clean and apparently had no connections to the criminal organization. But he was sure she was the person he had encountered the night he and Ben had confronted the leader of the Dollars.

He was busy fixing a car when he heard a voice calling him.

"Kevin Levin," the man said.

"Who are you guys?" he asked.

"We are the Dollars," the man answered.

"Lots of people claim they're the Dollars, do you know how many people I've beat up and they ran away claiming they were just faking it?"

"Do you want to fight us to find out?" the man asked.

"Careful, Leroy," one of them warned, "The boss said no fighting Kevin Levin. We're here to just give him a message."

"You guys aren't here to take my business, you're boss is a piece of work, you tell her whatever message she has for me she can come here and give it to me herself."

"Unfortunately, the Dollars don't work that way," Leroy told him.

"Show me proof you guys are the real deal, and maybe I'll be interested in meeting your boss."

Leroy held up a ring, "All legit members of the Dollars wear this ring. The others meeting with Tennyson can prove that. You both can compare notes when you arrive at the specified location."

"The pond outside of town, come alone at midnight tonight, the leader of the Dollars will be waiting for you there."

"Who says that I'm going to do what you say?" Kevin scowled.

"The boss figured you'd say something like that so we were told to give you this," Leroy said, tossing Kevin a small object. He caught it and stared at it.

It was the engagement ring he'd given Gwen years and years ago. "Where did you get this?" he demanded.

"Come tonight and you'll find out." The rest of the Dollars turned and left the building.

Kevin was mystified, but he would definitely go to Grandpa Max's old fishing hole, he wanted the truth and he was going to get it, even if he had to beat it out of the leader of the Dollars to find it.


	4. Philanthropy

**Philanthropy**

Ben was bored; he was looking through a bunch of old papers and boxes. He stumbled across his cousin's old laptop. She had used her computer a lot, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, she had used it a lot and it was also used for her school reports.

He was curious about his cousin, he'd always been nosy and wanted to see what she'd written, she'd always gotten good grades, even in college. He found a report that interested him. "Character Analysis of the Count of Monte Cristo", she'd been fond of romance novels and fantasy and some action movies but he recalled this had been her favorite book when it came to classic literature.

He looked over the paper and put it away. Ben decided he needed to go out on patrol now.

He was wandering through Bellwood when he was approached by a group of men in suits.

"Our boss wants to meet you," Leroy told him.

"How do I know you guys are really the Dollars?" Ben demanded. There were plenty of people pretending to be part of the Dollars, some idiots even pretended to be the leader of the gang. He never fell for it though, the real leader of the Dollars would never reveal their identity to him.

"We all wear this ring," Leroy held up his hand. "Anyone else who claims to be apart of the Dollars and doesn't have this ring is an imposter. Our leader wants to meet you in person. She says she's impressed that you and Levin have pursued her and she holds you both in high esteem. You will go to the pond outside of town and you will meet one of our members your password is "I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good and the answer you'll get is may the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked. You'll get all your answers tonight."

Ben was stunned and in a daze, everything was moving too fast. His Plumber badge was beeping, it was Kevin. He met him downtown and found him.

"Did you see that? Kevin asked.

"What? I didn't see anything."

"It was that lady, the one who claimed she was the leader of the Dollars."

They began running after her as she walked around a corner._  
_

Kevin and Ben found their way to a location where a woman dressed in black was waiting for them. Her face was hidden but he knew it was the same woman.

Ben ran forward, turning into Four-Arms as he began fighting her. They fought and Gwen somersaulted back. Kevin joined the fray and hit her with his rock coated fist.

Gwen gripped his wrist and performed a taekwondo throw that she had used many times. Kevin flew back and Ben moved into meet her when he suddenly saw something in the distance and turned his attention from her and ran after the figure.

Kevin stared at her. "Why'd you kiss me before?"

"Does it really mean that much to you? I used it to distract you."

"It's not fair, you can't just use your body to mess with me," Kevin scowled.

"It's not like you didn't enjoy it," Gwen smiled. Kevin tried to attack her again, but she avoided him easily.

She pulled him close again, "You're wondering about the ring. Don't think I don't know everything about you."

"Of course you'd know things about me, you've got money, anyone with money can find out anything."

"Make sure you come to the designated meeting place tonight, then you'll learn everything."

"You could have copied Gwen's ring, you might have set all this up to amuse yourself."

"Just make sure you're there," Gwen said, she turned and left him. "If you try to stop me, I will hurt you."

Kevin let her leave, he had to help Ben and he didn't have time to follow her. He felt like a puppet having his strings pulled. He didn't like it one bit. He turned and sprinted after Ben.

Gwen walked away and smiled; her plans were going off without too much of a hitch.

She smiled, the reunion was tonight, the ache in her soul would be eased and she would mend a little.

Kevin Levin frowned; his eyes were adjusting to the darkness. He'd finally had a break in discovering the identity of just who "God" was. He didn't have a name for sure, but the name Dantes kept coming up and it must be another one of the leader's many aliases.

"So they found you, huh?"

"Yeah, someone came to me while I was out, said they were with them and said that their leader wanted to meet me," Ben told him.

"Same here," Kevin added. "What was their proof?"

"They showed me some kind of ring that they all wear."

"Ditto that, but why would the leader of the Dollars, the most powerful criminal organization in the galaxy want to meet with us?"

"Maybe they wanna fight us or pay us off, they've paid off most of the Plumbers, we aren't even pretending to fight them anymore, except for the old timers, they all said no and for some reason they're not threatening them or anything like that," Ben frowned. "I just don't quite understand what's going on."

"Good evening Ben 10,000, Kevin Levin," a voice said. They turned and saw an elderly Anodite standing over near a dark corner of the pond. There was someone else walking toward them, though they were still far away.

"What's the password?" the old man asked.

"I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good," Ben replied. He thanked the stars for his good memory.

"May the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked," he replied.

"Wait, aren't you Faria?" Kevin asked.

"You've heard of me, I'm flattered," he sighed.

"Are you the head of the Dollars," Ben asked. "Did you ask us here? And why Grandpa Max's fishing hole?"

"This is a special place for all of you; there is no more suitable place for a reunion than here. Now I'll leave you alone. You'll need time to catch up."

"A reunion, with whom?" Ben asked.

Kevin was trying to see who was coming toward them. He began hearing a distinct clicking sound, as if they weren't walking on the grass; they were walking on something else. He knew this sound but couldn't quite place it.

He stopped, the sensation he was feeling, the power, the energy, it was too surreal, he began moving forward, his legs carrying him as fast as he could go. Ben was right behind him.

Ben had caught a brief glimpse in the moonlight, a flicker of crimson, and green, it was all he needed to know.

Kevin reached her first; his arms encircled her waist immediately, his mouth was on hers as he nearly toppled over. Ben embraced her as well, she was warm and real and alive, and that was all that mattered.

"Gwen!" Ben whispered. "I'm so happy to see you!"

"Ben, I've missed you!" Gwen said through her tears.

"I haven't seen you in so long…" Be moved to get a better view of her face. "Oh God! What happened to your face?"

Kevin hadn't been able to see her in the dark and moved back to see what Ben had reacted to.

He gasped; Gwen's face had one of the nastiest scars he'd ever seen in his life. The jagged lines crossed her features and looked like someone had tried to cut her face in half.

"Who did this to you?" they asked in unison.

"The same people who tortured and raped me for sixteen years."

Kevin held her even tighter, his eyes burning with rage amidst tears of grief. Someone was going to die a slow, painful, agonizing death.

"Who is he? Tell me!" Kevin demanded.

"I won't," she said evenly.

"Why? So we don't kill him?" Ben seethed. "You're the head of a criminal organization, and you _still_ don't want to kill him?"

"And yet you say that like it doesn't matter, even though you've been trying to stop me," Gwen sighed. She leaned into Kevin's warmth, relishing the feeling of being with him again, being with both of them made her forget her pain for awhile.

"The world's not black and white anymore; I've discovered too many things to say that there are just heroes and villains."

"And that's not just because of what happened to me?" she asked.

"No, I've seen what's happening to the Plumbers, and now I've confirmed everything I feared."

"What happened to the people who raped you?" Kevin asked. There was a murderous look in his eyes.

"I already killed one of them," she told them. They were not shocked; anyone in her position would do that.

"There was more than one, but I won't kill him, death is too good for him, I want them all to suffer just like I did, and the reason I called you both here, is because I don't want you to stop me."

"Why would we?" Ben asked. So this was about revenge, but Gwen wasn't any ordinary criminal, her motive was not petty, the things she did were illegal, but she was in no way and evil person. After all she'd told him, he just wanted to find out who was responsible and rip them apart with is bare hands.

"There is something else I need to tell you," Gwen said heavily. "They didn't just rape me…I got pregnant. Evan, come on out."

Ben gasped. He remembered Evan, his son Kenny had brought him over from school, said he was new there. The boys had all gotten along well and they all liked him immediately.

"I suppose I could just tell you who my father is, but I think it can go without being said," Evan held up his hands.

Kevin saw it, and flew into a rage, his fist slammed into the nearest tree, splitting it in half.

"No!"

"Michael did this to you!" Ben roared; staring at Gwen, how could she _not _tell him her rapist was Michael Morningstar?

"Yes, he did."

"I nearly had him! I fought him today!" Ben fumed. "If I'd have known this I would have killed him!"

Kevin's fury was swirling in his soul. He remembered all the crude taunting, Morningstar especially enjoyed making salacious, lewd remarks about Gwen. He thought it was just to make him angry to taunt him that she was gone, but now he knew why.

How could such horrible things happen to them? His problems were much less than hers, but to have been denied the happiness they deserved tore him apart. To know that she'd been alive all this time made him feel guilty, he should have been looking, suspected something, even when they'd produced a body, he and Ben had shared the emotion that it was not her, Max had tried to investigate, but it had gotten him nowhere and they had pressured him to retire.

The four of them moved over to a nearby rock and sat down. Kevin noted Evan's nervous look, but it had nothing to do with him being nervous about being around them. They'd met him before when Gwen had been disguised and using an alias.

He seemed fidgety and restless, as if something was bothering him.

"It's okay Evan, I know," Gwen took his hand in hers. "Take as much as you need."

Kevin watched as he took his mother's hand and began draining the energy out of her. But it was much different than Michael's, he didn't just gorge himself on it, he was hesitant and he seemed to despise every second of it.

He remembered absorbing Gwen's energy, how euphoric it felt, but he understood, this boy was her son, and he did not have Morningstar's psychopathic tendencies or his attitude of not caring about anyone else besides himself.

Kevin didn't know what to say. What could he say? He was broken up about how he had failed to protect her from everything that had happened.

"Are you alright Evan?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm fine now, I'm sorry Mom," he told her, he pulled his hand away.

Ben and Gwen moved out of earshot and began to talk about his family and what had happened for the last sixteen years. Kevin knew this was their way of letting him know that he needed to talk to the young teen.

"What's bothering you, Evan?" Kevin stared at him as boy buried his face in his hands and sighed.

"Michael Morningstar. I hate him so much for what he did to Mom. It was so bad, I—I had to hear it all, from as far back as I could remember. She'd hear them coming and tell me to hide, and not make a sound. They'd come in and do—those things to her, and I'd hear her scream, she fought so hard every time, and they just wouldn't stop. They got a big kick out of it like it was a game. I watched once, even though she told me never to look, I saw him, and that other sicko, they'd call her a filthy whore and a slut, they liked to bring in a holographic generator and they'd turn into you or Uncle Ben, before, before they'd—Oh, God, I don't want to even finish that. I just want to kill him."

"You're not the only one," Kevin told him, "I'd like nothing more than to snap his neck in half. Don't believe for a second that you're anything like Morningstar; I just wish I could have protected her. I should've figured out what was going on, it's my fault this happened."

Evan stared at Kevin, he had always admired him, because of the stories his mother told.

"I should have protected her. I should have done something as soon as I could understand, she taught me her spells, taught me how to use her powers, but she said they might hurt me if they found me so she told me not to stop them. It's all my—"

"It's not your fault kid, not your fault," Kevin placed a hand on his shoulder. "How did she raise you in that hellhole?"

"It was hard for me, I didn't understand why we were locked away like animals when we didn't do anything wrong. I don't suppose I ever will."

"She teach you everything?"

"As much as she could, yes," Evan sighed. "I didn't see the sun until a year ago."

"It's not fair," Kevin sighed. "You shouldn't have to be on the brunt end of this mess."

"It sickens me; I have his powers, and his face!" Evan hissed. "I can't stand it!"

Kevin did notice that was true, he did bear a strong resemblance to that monster Michael Morningstar having similar facial features and eye color, but he had Gwen's fiery red hair, which distinguished him from his "father", but he had his mother's slight build.

Kevin saw Ben and Gwen coming back.

"Gwen, since you apparently know everything about what's going on, who else is behind this than just Michael?" Ben prodded.

"Are you going to make me tell you?"

"If you want my help in stopping this, then yes," Ben crossed his arms.

"What makes you think I know who else is involved?"

"Gwen they nicknamed you _God_, of course you know what's going on."

"You know by getting involved with me, you're aligning yourself with the galaxy's largest criminal organization, you know that?"

"The Plumbers is practically a criminal organization now, compared to them you're a saint!" Ben told her. "And you're my cousin, they took you away from us for no reason at all, I'm not going to just sit by and do nothing."

"There were reasons, Charmcaster was jealous, Michael hates me, and Morgg just wanted to make my life Hell. They knew they couldn't touch you or Kevin, but I was vulnerable, it would be too hard to come up with something they could frame either of you for, because you both are high profile, the scheme would be uncovered sooner."

"She was our friend, and she used me, but why would she marry me?" Kevin asked, "I was shocked Morrg got his old position back."

"Maybe we should have let him die. Would have saved us the trouble. As for Charmcaster, she was good and our friend for a long time, but I think she'd always been jealous of her and did this to say "screw you" to Gwen," Ben told him, "and take your money too."

The foul mood was quite apparent and Ben broke the tension.

"Let's go get some smoothies," Ben suggested. "All this depressing talk is making me fidgety and I need a drink."

"Fine, I'll buy," Gwen told him.

"We'll take my car," Ben told them.

Ben was driving in the front seat, Kevin and Gwen sat in the back with Evan in the front passenger's seat. The two didn't kiss or talk; they just held each other in silence.

"I missed you so much," Kevin smiled. He whispered sweet words into her ear, reassuring her that everything was fine.

"Let's go get Cooper," Ben suggested. "He deserves to know the truth too."

There were quite a few cars in front of Cooper's house; he didn't usually have a lot of company. This probably wasn't a good thing.

"Cooper?" Ben asked, they were stopping by to see him and give him the good news, he was shocked to find his friend being beaten up by ten men, they were each wearing a uniform of some sort and he saw the insignia. The Dollars. Gwen, who they hadn't seen had such a wrathful look on her face that it would have scared Satan straight from the bowels of Hell.

He glanced at her as if to ask, "Are they with you?"

Are The look on her face clearly stated otherwise.

"Get back Tennyson, you can't stop the Dollars, your friend owes us a lot of money and we intend to take it back."

They didn't see Gwen, but she'd moved back just a little so she was standing out of the light.

"So you're with the Dollars are you? Since when did they start taking money from civilians?" It had always been her modus operandi to make deals with criminals, buy businesses, companies, but never deal directly with civilians as it was the typical, tyrannical thug routine, and it was beneath her.

Besides, it wasn't about the money, money was just a tool she needed, she tended to use it to gain things, be it people, influence, access to information. She didn't need money, at least not by behaving by the old clichéd mob boss routine.

Cooper stopped and looked up, he thought he heard a voice, so beautiful and familiar he thought he must be dreaming.

He must be about to die, Cooper convinced himself, this was the part where you heard voices of the people who had died before you. The voice seemed to belong to Gwen, who he had always loved, though it was unrequited romantically, they'd always had a platonic relationship, he had been just as devastated as Kevin when he found out that she was dead, he and Kevin had become closer as friends in their grief and they had always taken flowers to her grave on her birthday.

"How much does he owe you?" Gwen inquired curiously. Cooper didn't seem like the type to get into debt, but she had learned he had tried to start a business and it had failed. He must have inadvertently borrowed money from the wrong people.

"A million dollars, Missy," they smirked.

Ben and Kevin stared in awe as they saw men who apparently came out of nowhere and gathered behind him. Just how many people worked for her? He didn't even recognize these people, except for Leroy who raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'll give you five million dollars if you and your men will leave Cooper alone," Gwen told them, keeping her voice even.

"Like you have that kind of money," the man smirked.

"Leroy, show him the money," Gwen ordered. Leroy opened up the suitcase.

"You want in with the Dollars, I'll be generous you pay me ten thousand and your friend is off the hook."

"You're a fool, you're not the leader of the Dollars, and you don't even know my name. The leader of the Dollars knows everything about anyone. I know who you are Josef Eckhard. You're a rather shady drug runner, you deal in intergalactic sex trafficking and you've murdered quite a few people."

Kevin stared in awe, he knew a little about Josef but he didn't know as much as she did.

"Take the money and leave Cooper alone, if you so much as step on this property you will be thrown into the nearest jail where you will rot and _never_ get out."

"You're bluffing lady, what do you think you can possibly do? My men have guns, we'll shoot you dead."

"All I have to do is snap my fingers and you and your men will be disarmed, no one impersonates the Dollars, and no one pretends to be me."

"Who do you think you are? I am the leader of the Dollars!" Josef screamed.

Gwen snapped her fingers, "I warned you."

Suddenly, the group of men who were standing behind Kevin moved forward and easily overpowered the would-be Dollars and they were easily disarmed. Two of her men moved to protect a bloodied Cooper who was bleeding on the ground.

Ben was impressed. They were very well trained and knew what they were doing. Gwen's reputation was well earned in the criminal underworld. Ben had to admire her ambition, she always put everything into whatever she did, and now that she was technically an intergalactic mafia boss, her skills and personality would have most certainly gotten her to her position as the most powerful criminal in the known galaxy.

"Listen lady, Josef stuttered. "We'll stop the charade, join you for real. We'll forgive Copper's debt; we'll kick up a share of our profits to you."

"Really?" Gwen asked. "Let me smoke and think it over." Faria handed her a cigar.

Kevin gaped; her cigar was a $1,000 bill! How much money did she _have_?

"I don't want your money, and I hardly think you're the loyal type," Gwen turned to her cousin. "Ben, he's all yours."

She stepped into the light. "Don't think you're going to have a nice time in the Null Void either. My people are everywhere."

The terrified look on the man's face was apparent. Cooper stared at Gwen in awe and wonder. Gwen was alive! She was here and she had rescued him from being murdered.

He ran to her and embraced her. He burst into tears and sobbed.

"It's okay Cooper," Gwen smiled. He stared at her scars and gasped, but he didn't dare ask her about them. Not yet. Kevin would probably fill him in later.

"Gwen, what are you going to do with that money?" Cooper asked.

Leroy handed it to him.

"I—I can't take this!" Cooper protested.

"Yes you can, it has no connections to the Dollars, it's my money, open your business, chase your dreams."

"Gwen, I don't know what to say!" He began to cry.

"You don't have to say anything."

Gwen grinned, "Get yourself cleaned up; we're going to Mr. Smoothies."

It was the next day, they had spent the night talking and laughing and enjoying smoothies as they reveled in each other's company. Ben had called Julie and told him to meet them there, not telling her that Gwen was with them. Their reunion had been a joyous one, but they had all sworn each other to secrecy. For the first time in sixteen years, everything felt right in the world.

* * *

Gwen had given Kevin her address and told him to come and see her. Kevin Levin pulled his car up to the front of the vast mansion at the address Gwen had given him. It was very decadent, very beautiful and the grandeur of it all seemed to scream wealth and status. It didn't seem to fit her simplistic, modest nature, but it was all part of the role she was playing so he understood.

He walked up to the vast doors, and to his surprise, they opened. He saw Faria waiting for him.

"She's been expecting you Kevin, she's asleep, but she wanted me to wake her when you arrived."

Kevin was led through the large living space and up a flight of stairs. He was led through the hall to a closed room.

"Please be aware. Gwen tends to have nightmares and lucid dreams about her horrible experiences in the Null Void. Try not to get too close, she might hurt you."

"I'll keep that in mind," Kevin nodded, the door was open and he stepped inside.

Kevin glanced around the room; there was no sign of Gwen. He rounded a corner and saw Gwen sleeping on the cold hard floor, covered in a blanket. She was thrashing around in the throes of a nightmare.

"Michael, Michael stop! Let go of me!"

"Gwen, wake up! You're dreaming, wake up!" Kevin moved to shake her awake.

Firm hands gripped his throat and started squeezing. Kevin did his best to pull her hands off him. Being half Osmosian he had superhuman strength, but even he had a difficult time breaking her grip.

"G-Gwen, let go!" Kevin gasped.

Her eyes shot open and she immediately released him.

"Kevin! I'm sorry!" The apology was instantaneous. She hadn't meant to hurt him; it was a reaction to her dream.

"It's okay, why are you down on the floor?"

"I've been sleeping on a cold, hard slab for sixteen years, I'm used to it."

Kevin moved and pulled her onto his lap, she rested her head against his chest as she leaned back.

"I've missed you so much," Kevin whispered into her hair.

"It's been so long," she murmured. "What happens to us next?"

"I'm not sure," Kevin was thoughtful. "I'm not sure of the status of our relationship. We're still close, right?"

"Of course we are," Gwen smiled, reaching up to stroke his cheek.

Her fingers brushed his face and he gently wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I won't do anything you don't want," he whispered softly. His mouth found hers with gentle tenderness that she had missed for so long.

His eyes shut as he clasped her close to him; he kissed her for a long time, only letting his mouth leave hers to catch his breath. He gently eased her back against the wall and reveled in the warmth of her body and the simple pleasure of her company.

Her shades of gray made her even more fascinating, perhaps it's because she'd been so adamant that right and wrong were black and white that made her criminal activities so intriguing. Perhaps it was because, he could never see her in such a role, and he played the role of the hero and she the villain, this aspect of their relationship was so interesting. He recalled the fight between them earlier, on the mega screen, before they're reunion, how it had invigorated him, how she had enticed him, it frightened him how she had used her body to manipulate him, especially after all she'd been through, it didn't seem right.

His hands began to move of their own accord, wandering over her clothed physique with interest. She was leaner than he remembered, but she was very strong and her time in the Null Void had made her into a combination of lithe muscle and flesh, fused with the darker intents of her cunning mind, she was even more beautiful than he remembered.

Her scars did not diminish her appearance, no they only accentuated her inner strength, only petty fools lamented the loss of their good looks.

What did he care for scars when she was here with him, the only person he had ever had feelings for, his soul mate, even though the description was mundane, it was one of the words that came to his mind when he thought of her.

His hands drifted up toward her chest and he suddenly realized that he was groping her.

"Sorry!" Kevin apologized, he'd let his emotions control him. He'd forgotten everything, he'd never been intimate with her, never married her. After all she'd gone through he was treating her like a slut. He'd never forgive himself for this.

"Kevin…" her voice trailed off.

"I shouldn't have done that, I just forgot, that's all. It's just…I used to do stuff like that to Charmcaster and…she told me she liked it, sometimes she was a little _too_ vocal about it, but…I've really messed this up. I—I better go."

"Kevin, I'm not mad at you, you didn't mean to, and you apologized already," she smiled at him. "It was an accident. I know you won't hurt me."

"I'm not going to let myself get carried away," he told her. "I promise."

Kevin had talked to Julie about what had happened to Gwen and they had both resolved to help her.

"Just don't shut yourself off from me, Julie told me, sometimes rape victims do that, and don't want to talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"It'll help you cope, or so I've heard."

"It probably would, but I don't want to be one of those people who won't stop talking about it."

"But I'll be here whenever you want to talk," he reassured her. "Do you want me to leave?"

"No," she closed her eyes for a second. "I want you to stay."

"Maybe we should get up from the floor," Kevin pulled her to her feet.

She showed him to the living room.

Kevin glanced around, "This place…doesn't feel like you at all."

"Of course not, because all this is an elaborate farce. Once everything's finished, I'll disappear, and go back to a normal life."

"Just what are you planning?"

She smiled, "I don't want to talk about that, tell me about what's been going on with you."

So Kevin told her about his hero work. His mechanics repair shop he owned. Devlin's college plans. They continued to talk and he had to wonder if it was more for the sake of talking than actually having a real conversation. No doubt she knew all this, but he knew she wanted to spend time with him.

He stayed there for hours. Evan was gone, once again over with Devlin and Kenny, they hadn't told their children, because someone might overhear something, and what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them, Gwen told Kevin and Ben that she had a plan to expose Warden Morrg, but she wouldn't go into details.

"Just what are you planning?" he asked in a serious voice as he gazed down at her quietly on her couch.

"Not telling, you'll just have to see when it happens. Where'd you get that scar?"

"I won't tell my story unless you tell me yours," he laughed.

"Fine, you'll just have to wait."

"I'd better go, it's getting late," Kevin got up from the couch.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Kevin," Gwen left the room.

Kevin began walking out of the living room when he suddenly saw a small scrap of paper on the desk; he looked at the words written on it:

"Oh, God, Your vengeance may sometimes be slow in coming, but I think that then it is all the more complete."

He had to wonder just how she was going to pull off her revenge; he couldn't wait to see the look on Morrg's face when it happened.

_**Author's Note: **__Sorry for the long wait everybody, been writing reviews to earn money and for two days straight I marathoned Princess Tutu on YouTube so I haven't been writing fan fic. I also have a new Shi Tsu-Poodle puppy!_


	5. Secrets

**Secrets**

The air was filled with tension as Kevin saw Max Tennyson with Ben. It was a crowded building where the Plumbers were meeting for their annual get together.

The meetings had usually been warm and good natured, but now they were far more serious.

They all had gathered in the Plumbers headquarters and Morrg addressed them.

"The Plumbers are not what they once were; crime has risen with the arrival of the Dollars. The time is come for us to double our efforts, along with all the other work we do."

"It's all lies!" Max hissed, "Crime hasn't gone up because of the Dollars, it's gone up because of this pathetic excuse for an organization."

"People will hear you, Grandpa," Ben scolded.

"I can't help if anyone hears me," he scowled.

Morrg went on and on, and Ben grew tired of the speech. After the man was done, everyone mingled and talked.

Kevin looked up and saw Gwen walk in and the lump formed in his throat and his heart raced. In a black dress, she looked every bit stunning and every eye was drawn to her.

Gwen walked over to Max and smiled and shook his hand. He didn't recognize her.

"You are Max Tennyson, I have heard many good things about you," Gwen smiled.

"I'm glad to meet you Miss, ah—"

"Dantes," Gwen told her grandfather, "I am pleased to meet you too. I would be honored if you would come to my estate tonight for dinner. I seek to connect myself to individuals of influence and good reputation."

"Of course I'll come," Max told her. He couldn't turn down such a polite young woman.

Gwen left the building and made sure she had her mansion ready to host the party that would bring her prey to her. She mingled through the vast crowd of guests until she found what she sought.

"Are they here?" she asked Faria. He had been her companion for a long time; he was the only true Anodite male she had ever known. It was an oddity, but he had no interest in standing out and drawing attention to himself.

"Yes, they came arm in arm like a married couple," he told her.

Gwen wished to vomit then and there, but it wasn't a good idea.

She walked through the crowd and was stopped by a gentleman in a nice suit and a hat.

"Hello Firo Prochainezo, it's nice of you to come here, just to see me," Gwen gave him a smile; the Italian tipped his very old fashioned hat to her and laughed.

"Oh I was just in the area," Firo laughed. "I must say I'm impressed with all this, haven't seen anything this exciting since the '30s."

"But it's not even 2030 yet," Gwen laughed.

"I mean the 1930s," Firo smiled.

"How would you know that?" she asked.

"I'm immortal, what can I say?"

"_Sure_ you are," Gwen joked.

"Oh, you have no idea," Firo turned and walked away.

Gwen watched him leave; he was a quirky man, had a New York accent and she thought maybe he could be Italian.

"Miss, Dantes?" a voice asked.

"Yes?" she asked.

There was a young man standing in front of her, the teen was dressed in a simple sweater and pants. He held a red cell phone in his hand and seemed to be a very happy boy.

"_Mikado Ryūgamine, it's very nice to meet you, I'm glad you took up my offer to come visit me, it's an honor to meet the _true_ founder of the Dollars."_

The boy was stunned she could speak perfectly good Japanese. _"When you told your story in the chatroom and said you wanted payback, I was more than happy to let you use my gang for your purposes. I'm also flattered that you said that when this was over you would give it all back to me."_

"_I do hope you'll stay for awhile," _Gwen gave Mikado a smile. _"We'll have to talk later."_

Kevin and Ben walked into the mansion together; Ben was shocked his cousin had purchased something so gaudy and opulent. He stared at all of it and decided to just go along with whatever Gwen was planning.

"Hello beautiful," Michael Morningstar charmingly. He bent down and kissed her hand. Kevin was so disgusted at how Gwen could let her rapist touch her; he barely resisted the urge to strangle the man in front of everyone.

"I hoped you would come Michael and you too, Charmcaster, I have only heard good things about you," Gwen kept her expression civil and showed no emotion.

Kevin gave her a look and she knew he wanted to speak to her. She made an excuse, and ushered him far out of earshot of the other guests.

"Are you insane?" he demanded angrily. "How can you even let him _touch_ you?"

"I have my reasons, I hate when he touches me, but I am no longer afraid of him. He cannot hurt me anymore. I have plans for the both of them, and for them to come to fruition; I have to bear his presence."

"I'm just worried about you," Kevin told her.

"Thank you," Gwen smiled at him. She walked back out and began conversing with another guest.

"Max Tennyson," Her smile was genuine, she was so happy to see him.

"This place is incredible; I'm impressed to say the least. It's like you have _too much _money to spend."

"It's nothing," Gwen gestured nonchalantly. "I live comfortably; I hope that my company can help Bellwood in the hard economy. Just because I'm rich doesn't mean I don't want to help other people, I just want to be careful with my money."

"I see."

Gwen decided to leave her grandfather; it was time to set her plan into motion. She got the attention of the guests.

"I am sure you are all bored and wondering why I would invite you all here, tonight should be very entertaining. Let's play a game," Gwen smiled at them.

"Have you felt the heaviness in this place? "Let's say we all look around, and if you find the source of the heavy feeling in this place, you will receive a prize."

"There is a secret here somewhere on the grounds, I will meet you when you find it. Good luck."

The two young men exchanged glances. Just what was she doing?

As the guests dispersed to search for the hidden secrets of the house, Kevin stayed back, observing Gwen, trying to see what she was looking at. He saw she was looking at a surveillance monitor. The cameras were focused on his ex wife and Michael Morningstar.

"_Michael, I don't like this," Charmcaster told him._

"_I know, do you think that _it_ has been discovered—"_

"_Don't finish that sentence, I'm sure that it's nothing," Charmcaster interrupted him nervously._

"_If this gets out, it could ruin me, everything I've established," Michael scowled._

"What is he talking about?" Kevin asked.

"All will be revealed in time," Gwen smiled. He watched the two wander around the mansion and when they came to the garden, they stopped; Charmcaster gasped and tried to suppress a terrified shriek.

Kevin looked around, Gwen was gone; he headed out to the garden and saw Michael and Charmcaster, hovered over a box that had been cleverly hidden in the garden.

"What is that?" Ben asked.

"It is a box, I found it while renovating this place, inside it is an infant, or was; I reported it to the police. This is the very box that I found, the coroner said that the child had been strangled and buried. I pity the souls that snuffed out the life of a child, there's a special place in Hell for them."

Both boys saw the expressions on their enemies' faces as they paled. "We'll be going now," Charmcaster told them.

"You don't want your prize?" Gwen asked.

"I'm sorry, I'll have to pass," she told her. She all but ran out of the garden.

"A pity," Gwen smiled. Michael left too, hastily begging her pardon.

Max Tennyson came up to her, "What's the meaning of all this?"

"It's just a game, nothing more than simple entertainment," Gwen told her grandfather; he looked disturbed.

"Don't trouble yourself over it," Gwen smiled. Max left and didn't think about it, but something did disturb him, the woman seemed to have a smug look on her face when she saw Charmcaster's pale face and horrified expression.

The other guests left and even Ben had to leave; hero work had pulled him away. Kevin was about to leave too, but Ben insisted he stay with Gwen.

Kevin moved closer to her, wrapping his arm around her waist. "What was all that?"

"It's just as I told them, the box that I found containing a dead baby."

"Is _that_ what they were talking about?" Kevin asked.

"Yes, you did know she was seeing him, didn't you?" Gwen looked up at him.

"I had my suspicions, I noticed she'd go out, claiming to run errands, and would return with the tiniest amount of groceries that wouldn't have taken hours and hours to go shopping for."

"She wouldn't sleep with me either, I wanted to have more kids than just Devlin, but she always said no."

Gwen shook with wrath, how she could treat Kevin like a prize, ignoring him once she "got" him. She would have sold her soul to the Devil himself if it meant that she could have traded her sixteen years in the Null Void for even one year with Kevin.

"It's. Not. Fair. She didn't have the right to treat you like that," Gwen seethed.

"Relax, my life with her is over, she doesn't matter anymore anyway."

"What about Devlin?" Gwen inquired.

"He doesn't have a good relationship with his mother either; she tried to gain custody of him when she divorced me. It wasn't pretty, but he'll have nothing to do with his mother."

"He's a good boy, she didn't deserve to be his mother, he's nothing like her."

They held each other quietly; she listened to his steady heartbeat and sighed in contentment.

"When will you tell me what you're planning?" Kevin asked.

"If you really want to know," she told him, "read this, and you'll know exactly what is going on."

She handed him the book. _The Count of Monte Cristo_, he had heard of it, and had even seen the movie, but he had never read the book. Now he wanted to read it, just so he could figure out what in the world she was planning, what she was going to use her tremendous wealth for.

Finally, she was going to reveal her secrets to him.

Kevin smiled, "I want to marry you, we were planning to be married. They arrested you on the night of our wedding rehearsal, for God's sake!"

"I know, and I was on the verge of graduating college too. When this is over, we'll get married. Evan will be happy; he deeply admires you and Devlin, I'll have to get to know him better before we get married, I don't want him to be unhappy either."

"We'll get back the life we were supposed to have," Kevin sighed. He promised, when all this was finished with her revenge, he would marry her and they would have the happy life they had lost, this story would have a happy ending.

She rested her head on his shoulder, "We are always in a hurry to be happy...for when we have suffered a long time, we have great difficulty in believing in good fortune."

"You are certainly less optimistic than I remember, but I'll be here for you, I want to help you, somehow."

"You have helped me already, but you shouldn't get involved with my plans, I told that to my son, and I'll say it to you, I don't want to put you in danger."

"I'm used to danger," Kevin chortled. "It doesn't bother me."

"But you have a son," the warning tone in her voice meant she was serious.

"It doesn't matter, Devlin can handle himself."

"How are you feeling, Gwen?" Kevin asked. He caressed her cheek and stroked her hair, trying to comfort her as best as he could.

"I am unsure, I am still nervous around people, I am afraid to be alone and I keep having flashbacks. But at the same time, I don't want to be around people, I'm also very paranoid."

"When will you talk to me about it?" Kevin asked, he knew that if she talked about it, it would help her cope, but he had no idea how he would react, all the disgusting, sordid details of her ordeals.

"Soon, I'm not quite ready yet," her voice sounded heavy. "I'll tell you everything soon though. But not now."

"I understand, but is there anything I can do for you?"

"You're doing more than enough, just being here with me. I can put aside my anger and hatred, just for a moment, with you, and you know how strong those feelings are, you've wanted revenge more than once, so don't get in my way."

"The only way I would get in your way, is if you kill them."

"No, if they die, they'll commit suicide, but death is too good for them, and if they die, they cannot be tormented, and I won't give them an easy way out."

Kevin stared at her, the change in her personality was justified, but he would make sure she wouldn't go too far, he didn't want her to turn into what they were, he would never forgive himself if she did.


	6. Intrigue and Plotting

**Chapter Six: Intrigue and Plotting**

Gwen Tennyson smiled at the information she read. She finally had control of all of Warden Morrg's assets. It would be best to let the man's wealth grow a bit, the alien was deeply in debt, wasting way his money in the casinos she owned, but she would not move her plans ahead too quickly. In her many hours of being alone, she had often concocted inventive forms of vengeance and ways to repay her captors, but once her son was born all thoughts of murdering them were put out of her mind, if she were caught she would not want to die while Evan watched.

Her hatred had wiped way her black and white morality that she had adhered to in her youth. Gwen would do anything to gain more wealth and status, deceit, con jobs, theft, bribery, extortion. Deception was her master skill, and if she had not loved her son, there might have been dead rivals strewn across the galaxy.

Kevin Levin was always on her mind, he was also the other reason she would not kill. In her pursuit of vengeance, the lives of those she manipulated did not matter, but to those she held dear, they were precious to her.

Gwen smiled, she was happy to be among the family she loved, although she had refused to contact her direct family, if they knew about her activities then it might put them in danger.

She'd been in meetings for the legitimate companies she'd owned, so no one could say she had no day job, but her main work was with the Dollars, sabotaging her enemies while maintaining her vast criminal organizations. From simple exchanges to complicated contraband smuggling, she handled it all with ease, very few of her operations ever went awry, but if her men were caught they were easily released by her other men who would help them escape the Incarcecon.

For a long time the Incarcecon had been only for aliens, but when she had gone there the rules had been changed so human prisoners were put in there as well.

Survival of the fittest, that was the only law in that place, but she had been a closely guarded secret, one that turned her into Michael Morningstar's personal plaything.

Gwen clenched her fist, it was only a matter of time before she would confront Michael Morningstar, but for now, she'd have to deal with Warden Morrg, her plan was finally finished and it was almost time for her to put it into motion, but she would wait for a certain date, only when the timing was right would she tell her men it was time to take down Warden Morrg.

Gwen frowned, she'd been busy with work for an hour and she was waiting for Ben and Kevin to arrive.

Leroy had pulled his car up to the front of the house when he spotted Ben Tennyson and Kevin Levin walking up to the door. He decided to follow them in, he was also there to see Gwen.

"Leroy, what are you doing here?" Kevin asked; he was a close associate of Gwen's in her work with the Dollars. He had no idea what the man did, but he didn't see him often.

"I'm here to work," Leroy said. "The Boss is waiting for me, I'll be going now."

"What exactly do you do?" Ben asked.

"I gather information for her, that's all," Leroy said. He walked through the door of the office. Ben and Kevin hung back, peeking into the room. They could see Gwen standing in front of a man, smoking her $1,000 cigarette and dressed in a simple shirt and pants. Ben also noted she was wearing plastic over her clothes; whatever was going to happen was not going to be pretty.

"Now I'll be generous and reasonable, tell me what Michael Morningstar is planning. I know his own gang the Lightbringers are trying to usurp the Dollars. What's his angle and where are his finances?"

"You'll get nothing from me; you won't be able to beat it out of me either."

"We'll see. I don't like violence. I'm a businesswoman; blood is a big expense," Gwen smiled wickedly.

"Who do you think you are, the Godfather?" the man sarcastically asked.

"Oh, you wish," Gwen backhanded him across the face.

The beating was violent and angry, the blood on her knuckles was drying and she glared at him. The man began to laugh.

"You think that scares me?" the man scoffed. "A few hits to the face and I'm squealing?"

Kevin was astonished as Gwen's face twisted with rage. "You think this is a game? " Each blow was harder than before. "You think I'm joking. I. Am. Dead. Serious. I'm a breath away from killing you, but if you die, you cannot suffer. And I can make you suffer. Leroy!"

The young man stepped forward.

"Do you have enough time to fit him in your busy schedule?" she asked. "This is Leroy, my negotiator. You can have a nice conversation with him."

"Leroy…the Tormentor, Leroy?" the man stared, horrified. "Oh God, no. I'll talk. I'll talk. Just keep that freak away from me!"

"Nice to see you've changed your mind," Gwen gestured for them to get the man out of her sight. Leroy looked at her.

Ben and Kevin backed up and hid out of sight as they saw Tack, a fellow Plumber walk in the door.

"Ma'am, a young alien named Tack is here to see you," Faria called to her.

"Send him in," Gwen had to wonder why her old Basic Training comrade was here to see her, but she knew he would not recognize her. Putting on an accommodating smile, she watched as her butler ushered the alien inside.

"Search him for bugs," Gwen ordered, it was a standard procedure for all her visitors. It was how the Plumbers had never been able to catch her; she even had machines that could detect when a recorder or camera was sewn into clothing.

"Honestly, I'm not here because of the Plumbers, I'm here because I'm desperate for money. Just a small loan, please!"

"A loan? No, loan sharks are something you don't want harassing you, just how much do you owe?"

$10,000 in debt, I've tried everything, please don't turn me down."

"I will not give you a loan." Tack looked stricken.

"Financial debt is a heavy burden and I am generous. I will pay off your debt, but I ask only one thing in return."

"What is it? I'll do anything!" Tack pleaded.

"Your loyalty," Gwen said. People were easy to win over if you knew how and what they wanted from you.

"But that would go against my ethics," Tack said sternly. "I will try to stop your activities."

"Oh, I know you will, but all I ask, is that you investigate Warden Morrg."

"Warden Morrg? Why him?"

"Look into him and you'll know."

Gwen smiled, "You won't be able to trace the cash I use back to me, if you try to use that as evidence against me. But I believe you are honest, and remember that I take loyalty very seriously, if you should double-cross me, you won't die, but you'll suffer terribly."

Tack trembled fearfully, just who was this woman? He saw the blood on her hands and on the plastic covering her clothes. She was no doubt ruthless and brutal.

"Don't be so scared, I would prefer that we be friends, at least for a little while." Her smile put him at ease.

"Thank you for your generosity, but when I find the evidence to arrest you, I will."

"I would expect no less of a Plumber," she smiled, knowing he would never be able to, but it was nice to see that even though he had accepted her money to pay off his debt, he was not going to bend the rules for her. She watched him go with a sense of pride; there were still people who would not bend their morals for the sake of money.

"Ben and Kevin are here to see you," Leroy informed her.

"I know. Gwen told him to leave and she calmly removed the plastic covering her clothes.

"So you really _are_ a criminal now, aren't you?" Kevin asked.

The expression on her face didn't change. "I am the leader of the Dollars; I did not become this powerful by being polite and asking nicely."

"But what about Evan?" Kevin asked. "Is he involved in any of this?"

"I have standards. I do not involve my son in my work. He wants in on what I'm doing but I won't let him anywhere near my plans. I didn't intend to involve either of you, but you wouldn't stop coming after me."

"So what happens now Gwen?" Ben looked at her. "Even if we wanted to stop you we can't because all Hell broke loose in the Null Void and criminals are escaping. You're not behind this are you?"

"Of course not," Gwen told them. "It's Michael. He too has his own organization in order to rival the Dollars after he's seen how successful I am."

"But he doesn't know it's you," Kevin noted.

"That's true, I intend to see that it stays that way, but I am already enacting a plan to destroy the Lightbringers and it won't be long before they fall too."

"Kevin, stay with her, I have to go. Vilgax escaped the Null Void again."

"I'm going with you," Kevin protested. Ben had been busy but he was always insisting that he stay with Gwen instead of helping him.

"That's an order Kevin, stay with Gwen. I'm sure it's what you'd rather do. Besides, you two have too much time to catch up on." Ben turned and left.

"What about Charmcaster?" he asked, he didn't like bringing up his ex wife, but he was curious about the plans concerning her.

"Let's just say her gold digging past is going to bite her. Hard."

"Might I ask just how?" Kevin inquired.

"No," Gwen looked at him.

Kevin decided to change the subject.

"Gwen, why are you so angry?" Kevin asked now that they were alone.

"What kind of question is that?" she demanded sarcastically. "They framed me for murder, stole my life away while condemning me to a living Hell. They ravaged my body and broke my spirit. Charmcaster stole my marriage to you, Morrg stole my reputation among the Plumbers, Michael stole my virginity. I have every right to be angry. I wish to be Providence myself, for I feel that the most beautiful, noblest, most sublime thing in the world, is to recompense and punish."

"Count of Monte Cristo, you have taken on his persona haven't you?" Kevin had devoured the book within days after she'd given it to him. He could see so much of her unhappy fate in Edmond's. But Edmond had gone too far and had hurt people who had never been involved in his misfortunes. He would make sure she would not make that mistake.

"Do you want something to drink?" Gwen asked, she poured herself some wine and sipped it, enjoying the taste.

"Of course," Kevin had been in need of a drink and gladly accepted her offer.

"How much do you drink?" he asked.

"Not a lot, just when I'm stressed or I need to relax. It takes my mind off things."

"So I see."

"Kevin, are you disappointed with me?" Gwen's expression was grim and solemn.

"What do you mean by that?" Kevin could never be disappointed in her.

"I have become a ruthless, relentless member of the galactic criminal element. I have more money than can be imagined and I will stop at nothing to get what I want. I have bowed before a God of Vengeance and I have been given the tools to execute it. My hatred has fueled my strength and I am doing things that I would never have dreamed I could do, I have become what I fought against. Now our roles are reversed."

"That's true, but I do find this side of you very…" Kevin moved closer to her. "…Appealing." His lips brushed hers; she pulled him close and kissed him as he held her against him.

"This always seems to happen to us a lot doesn't it?" Gwen asked teasingly.

"Making up for lost time, Gwen," Kevin grinned.

Gwen trailed kisses across his scars and down his neck and ran her fingers over his broad shoulders. His lips curved into a smile as he chuckled, quite pleased with her ministrations.

"Kevin…" she murmured. Her fingers explored his clothed chest with interest. His muscular build and physique were that of a man that regularly participated in athletics and with his hero work, she was sure that he was fit enough to handle anything.

Kevin gasped as he heard his shirt rip. Her mouth seared his chest and Kevin just let her kiss him. Gwen stroked his torso and he groaned.

Gwen lowered him onto the floor. "Kevin…"

"What is it, baby?" he asked.

"Nothing…" she whispered. She began to kiss him again and he felt something tugging at his jeans.

Kevin was astonished by her uncharacteristic behavior. "Gwen, wait a minute, are you all right? I don't want to rush this."

Gwen stopped and looked at him, then realized where they were and pulled away from him.

"Kevin, I'm sorry, I can't believe I did that. What came over me? Oh God. I got carried away."

Gwen got up. "Can you hand me your shirt?"

"Yes," he picked up the pieces and handed them to her. Gwen used her powers to reconstruct the shirt and handed it back to him.

"Please forgive me," Gwen whispered. "I need to be alone."

"All right," Kevin turned and walked away. He was trying to figure out what was going through her mind. She waited until Kevin was gone and she called Julie on the cell phone.

"Won't you come over? I need to talk to you."

Julie came over and looked at her. "Gwen, I know we don't talk a lot now that I have a different life, but there is something that I need to talk to you about."

"Is about you and Kevin isn't it?" Julie asked.

Gwen nodded.

"It's about your physical relationship with him."

"You know me too well, Julie," Gwen sighed. "I've just been asking myself if this is something I really want."

"I see, you're afraid because of what happened to you. You feel that wanting him is bad. It's not. You want the intimacy he gives you, but you're afraid that he'll hurt you." Julie put a hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"Remember, this is your decision. No one will make it for you. I have a wonderful relationship with Ben, and sex is a part of our lives as a married couple."

"I'm sure you're right. Thanks Julie," Gwen smiled. "I'll pay you a visit soon I promise; perhaps I'll come over for some coffee."

"Please do, I just feel bad, because I feel if we start spending time together like we used to, it might make people suspicious," Julie sighed.

"As soon as my business is finished, we'll spend time together again, I promise Julie," Gwen smiled at her best friend.

"I better go, Gwen, I'll see you around sometime," Julie decided to take her leave; she had to go run errands.

Later that day, Gwen heard her son walk into her room.

"Hello Mother," he said. "Where are you going?"

He noted that his mother had changed her clothes and had looked like she had showered and was wearing a very nice dress. She wore little makeup but she still looked very beautiful, despite her jarring facial scars.

"I'm going out, if you really must know, I'm going to see Kevin. Don't worry about me and don't wait up for me. I'll be all right."

"All right," Evan said evenly. He watched her leave, distraught, how could she go anywhere near a man, especially on today of all days, the day he had been conceived by Michael Morningstar?

He dialed up his Uncle Ben.

"Hello Evan," Ben told his young nephew.

"She's—she's going over to his house, Uncle Ben. How can she do that? She's going to sleep with him."

"There's nothing wrong with that, Evan, sex is not a horrible, evil thing, and Kevin would never hurt Gwen. He loves her and adores her. She's perfectly safe with him, and if they have sex then that is a decision your mother makes for herself. He won't push her for it."

"But—" Evan began to protest.

Ben interrupted him, "There is nothing for you to worry about. Go over to my house. Devlin will be there too. I'll text your mother about where you are and you can spend time with your friends."

"All right," Evan conceded. Ben texted his cousin and soon received a reply that she had given her son permission to spend time with his friends. Evan tried to put thoughts of his mother out of his head.

* * *

Kevin Ethan Levin stared at his reflection and sighed, still as handsome as he'd been in his teens, he had grown older and wiser. He removed the armor padding he wore while on patrol and ran his fingers through his long hair.

He needed to take a shower and he headed off to do so, he had been feeling restless that day. His thoughts were on Gwen and how she'd acted. If he closed his eyes, he could feel her small slim hands touching him, her fingers caressing his skin.

Had they been in a normal relationship, he might have let her have sexual relations right there on the floor, but their relationship was not normal, and the fact that she had survived rape, which is for both genders a terrifying ordeal that took some time to recover from, made him worry over her, but it was terribly hard for him to suppress his growing desire for sex with her. But he did not wish to rush her, but part of him was desperate for physical intimacy, he had not gone on many dates after Charmcaster's divorce, too afraid of having his heart broken. But here she was back in his life again and he was at a loss for what he should do.

He finished showering and dressed, he decided to cook dinner, for some reason he could not explain, he made dinner for more than one person, perhaps something might happen tonight, maybe that was why he was cooking for two.

He heard the doorbell ring; he hadn't been expecting any visitors, so he decided to see who it was.

"Hello?" he asked, expecting a salesmen, Mormons, or Church of Latter-Day Saints. Instead, it was Gwen, dressed in a black dress that stunned him. He felt his heart pounding, just like it had when he'd seen her in her prom dress. She was gorgeous, despite her scarred face; he didn't have to be "smoking hot" for him to love her. He had always loved her, long before she had been disfigured, but her looks did not concern him, having her with him was all that mattered.

"Kevin, can I come in? I hope I wasn't interrupting anything."

"Please, come in, I was just here by myself," Kevin let her in, and he had to wonder why she'd come to see him.


	7. Aniversary

**Chapter Seven: Anniversary **

_**Author's Note:** You may not see me update this for awhile. I got a PlayStation 3, Batman: Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, so I'll be busy playing instead of writing._

Ben Tennyson picked up his nephew and gave him a grin as the boy got into his car.

Evan smiled nervously and arrived at his Uncle's house. He pretended that he had nothing on his mind. He enjoyed spending time with Kenny and Devlin and instantly put his mother out of his thoughts at the sight of his friends.

Ben saw his Plumber's badge go off; he'd been busy all day, rounding up Incarcecon escapees.

"Tennyson, this is Magister Hulka, we still haven't finished catching all the escapees, will you give us a hand?"

"Of course," Ben smiled. "I'll be there in a little bit." He ended the communication.

"How would you boys like to help me round up some goons?" Ben asked. "You too, Evan. I need all the help I can get."

Evan hopped on his hoverboard and joined the other two boys as they all set off to catch criminals.

The camaraderie between the three boys was apparent. Ben reminisced that it was like looking and seeing a reflection of himself, Gwen and Kevin, but the other boys didn't know that Evan was related to Kenny. He respected Gwen's wishes and didn't tell the other boys.

"Oh man, this is gonna be fun, right Devlin?" Kenny asked excitedly.

"Yeah, I heard Michael Morningstar was spotted in the area," Devlin alleged. "My Dad's got a personal vendetta with that creep."

Evan didn't say anything, he was afraid if he did, he might reveal too much.

"Look!" Kenny's voice sounded excited. "That Six-Six, let's get him before he gets away!"

Devlin and Kenny had spotted Six-Six and had gone after him, leaving Evan alone. The teenager spotted a figure running away.

Evan caught sight of _him_, the hated monster who had spawned him. "Michael Morningstar! I'm going to kill you!"

"Oh really, little boy?" Michael taunted.

"Yes!" The snarl that came out of him startled Michael. Who was this little brat anyway?

Evan attacked him, striking at him; Michael avoided the blows with ease and smirked. The little kid thought he could play hero, did he? He had never seen him before, a newbie. How amusing, he was going to enjoy breaking the would-be Plumber.

Moving forward, the enraged teenager tried to kick the object of his hatred only to hit nothing but air. He repeatedly tried to land a hit, but failed every time.

"You know, you're not even worth fighting," Morningstar taunted. "I'll kill you with my bare hands and no powers at all!"

So they fought and it seemed like hours, but it couldn't have been more than a few minutes. Evan tried so hard to win. He used everything his mother had taught him, but it was no use. Evan felt like he was fighting a robot that could predict his every move and counter all his attacks.

Michael was having too much fun. He rained down blow upon blow and callously kicked the young man in the gut and watched as he stumbled backwards.

Darkstar gripped the boy by the neck and threw him through the nearest wall, breaking it as he bounced off the bricks. Before Evan could react, he felt the stinging pain of a steel-toed boot slamming into his face. His father continued to kick him, the pain was too much, he recalled how often he had done this to his mother and tried to be brave in spite of the pain.

Evan climbed to his feet and summoned his powers; the pink aura surrounded his hands.

"An Anodite, this will be even better, it's been so long since I've had a snack!"

Evan let loose a cry of rage and tried to send a stream of Manna toward Darkstar, the vampiric alien easily batted away the attack and slammed him into the wall, making sure to grind his face into it. The small cuts hurt far more than when he'd been kicked in the face. He made sure not to let it show.

Michael backhanded the boy as he slammed his knee into his face. He watched as the boy became weaker and weaker. Evan's body slumped against the wall, he tried to catch his breath.

"I've had enough fun." Michael prepared to drain the energy out of the impetuous teenager. He had needed more energy recently and aliens and normal humans weren't cutting it anymore.

Evan managed to take off his gloves. He was going to kill his father and he didn't care if they threw him into the Null Void. He just had to attack at just the right time.

"You remind me of someone, you've got spirit," his father mocked. "I wonder who it is."

"Contigo!" Ben shouted, forming a shield around Evan.

Stepping forward, the Alien Hero and Wielder of the Ultimatrix prepared to fight Darkstar, and this time, he was going to kill him, he had always shown some restraint, but this time, he was going to murder him for what he'd done to Gwen, he would be justified and it would be passed off as vigilante justice, no doubt the Plumbers were so corrupt they would ignore it anyway as many Plumbers were killing criminals without repercussions.

He'd mulled this over ever since Gwen had told him about how she'd been raped by Darkstar, he didn't cross moral lines lightly, and even though he had threatened his enemies with death he had always found a way to avert it, but this time, there wasn't going to be any second chances for Michael. He'd burned all his previous chances and he was going to pay for his evil deeds with his life.

Sometimes there are monsters that _have_ to die. Michael Morningstar was one of them. It might not be morally right, but right and wrong for him had shattered when the justice system the Plumbers had prided themselves in failed to keep his cousin out of prison.

Killing his enemies was always a last resort, but the way things were going, it was beginning to become a first resort. No one could be trusted, except Gwen, Grandpa Max's Plumbers and Julie.

He was going to kill Darkstar, and no one was going to stop him. Ben deduced his nephew wanted to do the same, but the boy was nowhere near prepared to kill a man. He didn't have the skills or the resolve to do something like that. But he did.

"That's enough Michael!" Ben told him.

"Tennyson, I don't have time to deal with you!" Michael vanished from his sight. The man was gone, Ben would have to deal with him another day. Ben turned to Evan.

"What were you thinking?" Ben screamed angrily. "Your mother told you to stay away from him! You could have been killed, and believe me, I _will_ tell her about what you've done!"

"I'm sorry, Sir," Evan mumbled an apology.

"Let's go home, Devlin and Kenny are waiting for you," Ben calmed down with a smile.

Ben sent a text informing his cousin of what her son had done and that he would be all right despite his injuries. He knew Gwen wouldn't take it well and would no doubt give her son a good lecture.

But for now, he would make sure his nephew was patched up and that they would all have a good time together. He took the boys back to headquarters where he cleaned up Evan's face and made sure Kenny and Devlin were unhurt. Then they headed home, they had a lot of things planned for the evening and there wasn't any time to waste.

Gwen came in and put her purse on the table. She sat across from Kevin, who observed her with interest. He knew he should be a hospitable host and offer her something to eat.

"I made some dinner, I'm not sure why I made it for two, but I think I had a feeling you'd be coming over."

"Thanks. I'm glad you did," Gwen gave him a smile. "What did you make?"

"Just some chicken and vegetables," Kevin smiled. "Are you hungry? I shouldn't eat in front of you."

"I'll have some," Gwen accepted his offer and sat down to eat. "I didn't see you as the type to cook."

"I had to learn after Charmcaster left. Not that she was a good cook anyway."

"How bad was it?"

"Bad," Kevin told her. "She hated cooking."

"I've tried to cook, I'm okay with it. Usually Faria cooks."

"Why would he cook?" Kevin inquired.

"He is my butler and he does live with us."

"Yes, I know, but I thought you had your own private chef or something. All that money you have."

"I don't want people too close to my operations, so I only hire people who are part of the Dollars to do housework for me."

"Tell me, is it true that you're not the real leader of the Dollars?"

"Yes, it's true, but I have met him, he's just a teenager, but he was an extraordinary boy."

"So you're just the face that everyone sees. Someone else actually started the Dollars."

Kevin took a few bites of his dinner. "So, how is the food?"

"Not bad, it's very good," Gwen told him honestly. She genuinely enjoyed his cooking and smiled at him.

They continued eating. Kevin got up to look for something to drink. Alcohol sounded very good about now.

"No, I don't need anything to drink. Don't worry about it."

They continued to talk until they were finished. He would not bring up her criminal activities, but he knew she wouldn't tell him anything. This was a strange situation, being on the right side of the law, well, as much of a right side as he could be, with a corrupt Plumber's organization could be, but he could never bring himself to arrest her, despite her illegal activities, probably because he had lived in the moral gray area for a long time himself.

Gwen decided it was time to put an end to the small talk and become serious.

"Kevin, there's something I want to talk to you about," Gwen told him gently, sitting across the table from him.

"What about?" Kevin asked.

"Today is the day that Michael Morningstar raped me sixteen years ago."

Kevin braced himself. "Take as much time as you need to tell me."

She told him of her time in prison, how the prisoners had attacked her at behest of the guards until she was worn out, and then Michael and another guard had injected her with drugs and raped her repeatedly. The gloating and the violence and the pain. She also described being beaten and flogged, being forced to work in the mines and how she had become pregnant and had given birth to Evan by herself. She recounted to him of her plan to dig her way out. How she had killed one of her rapists and how Michael had backed way and left her alone out of fear of being killed. She told of her escape and founding the Dollars, or rather, contacting Mikado to use his gang for her purposes.

Kevin was stunned. Fury clouded his vision, but he forced himself to remain calm. He wouldn't let her see him angry. He agonized that the night they had been supposed to be making love, he had been alone in tears while she was being viscously violated by his hated enemy, the happy years they should have spent together raising their sons, for they would have had more than one, were spent separated and alone.

"Can we go in the living room?" she asked.

"Yes, of course," Kevin led he to the living room and sat beside her on the sofa.

She sat down and leaned in closer to him, running her fingers through his hair. Her mouth found his and she leaned against his body.

He let the silence between them linger. Kevin wanted to say something to her, but found no words as they died on his lips every time he tried to speak.

He began kissing her, gently pressing his lips to hers, enjoying the sweetness of her mouth and branded her with his kisses whispered comforting words in her ear.

"What can I do for you? Is there any way I can help you?" Kevin asked.

"You always ask me that," Gwen looked at him. "But like I told you, just you being here for me is enough. I am piecing my life back together and you're a part of that."

"You mean so much to me," she murmured. "It was your face in my mind when I was in agony that kept me going, I never gave up because I always thought of you and Ben, and I missed you so much."

"I know," Kevin sighed. "I should have tried harder to look for you, I didn't think the body they showed us was you, I should have suspected something I should have investigated Morrg. I've known all my life he was a scumbag, I missed the obvious signs that he was behind all this!"

"It's not your fault, Kevin. None of this is."

They held each other in silence for a long time.

"Make love to me, Kevin," Gwen uttered the words she had been mulling over for a long time. Her voice was hesitant, Kevin was stunned. Could she seriously want sex on the anniversary of the day her virginity had been ripped away?

"I don't know, I mean, today is very hard for you. I'm not sure if this is something we should do."

"This isn't something I'm doing on a whim. I've been thinking about this for months, deciding if I'm ready for an intimate relationship with you. I've decided that I'm ready for this aspect of our lives and you've never pressed the issue."

"I may be a guy, but I do have other things on my mind besides sex." He was genuinely concerned about her. But he should at least make sure this is something she really wanted, and not some spur of the moment thing that came out of nowhere.

"Gwen, we shouldn't, it might trigger you, and I don't want that to happen to you."

"It's alright, I have been going to therapy and talking to councilors, I'm getting better, if I become uncomfortable I'll tell you. This is something I want, and _I'm_ initiating this."

"I—I just want to make sure this is your decision. I don't want to pressure you into this or anything," Kevin stroked her face. "But instant fix comfort sex is a lie. Real life doesn't exactly work that way."

"I know real life doesn't work that way, but you are truly helping me. Kevin, please, let me stay tonight, I don't want to be alone, I hate being alone by myself, but I won't insist my son stay here just for me."

"Gwen, you can stay if that's what you want," Kevin smiled tenderly. He would never do anything to push her away from him.

"I've already gone to the doctor and I have no sexually transmitted diseases and my body has healed from the attacks."

"But I don't want to hurt you," Kevin told her honestly. He was deathly afraid of causing her pain. He'd heard that rape survivors would experience pain during consensual sex; he would never forgive himself if he unintentionally hurt her.

"I already took a shower. Tonight is something that I want to share with you," Gwen whispered into his ear, Kevin felt a chill go down his spine. She planned this, just like she planned everything in her life. He was thankful he had decided to take one earlier when he had gotten home from a long day of fighting criminals.

She kissed him deeply and pulled him close to her; she slipped her hands beneath his shirt and felt the warmth of his skin.

"There is neither happiness nor unhappiness in this world; there is only the comparison of one state with another," Kevin whispered gently in her ear. Gwen smiled broadly, so he _had_ paid attention to what he had read after all, these were the words had sustained her soul for sixteen years.

"Only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss," Gwen replied as she groaned while he kissed her neck. "It is necessary to have wished for death in order to know how good life is to live."

"And tonight, _lovely_ Gwen, we will _live_, we've both been dead for so long. You have revived me. I will give you whatever I can, but it probably won't be much," Kevin cupped her face in his hands, stroking her hair with his fingers.

"Oh God, what a life this is," a sigh escaped her lips.

"We'll have a good life, I promise."

"Your room, please," she asked him nervously.

"All right," Kevin smiled. He would do what she wished.

Kevin felt himself move as he led her toward his bedroom, he began to undo her shirt, trying not to be too hasty, he had wanted her for years, and now she was ready to be with him.

He heard the door shut behind him, and he resolved to help her heal, as much as he could.

_**Author's Notes:**_ _I usually do not bash other authors, but when people say that __TragedyDawl's fanfic "Rape Me", yes that is the title of it, is a good fanfic just because Gwen and Kevin have good comfort sex RIGHT AFTER IT HAPPENED Pisses. Me. Off. And I do not use the word piss lightly since I'm not one to cuss, but doing research on all the side effects of rape and reading real life stories of people who are still having flashbacks and PTSD twenty years after it happened makes me hate character rape fics. Even though it's part of my story, at least I'm trying to do it with some dignity, unlike other people._


	8. Chessboard

**Chapter Eight: Chessboard**

_**Author's Note:**__ All I have to say is, "Take this you stupid fanfics where comfort sex after rape happens in the same chapter and makes everything automatically better", authors research fail this all the time, I refuse to, and I've had to do research and have read real life stories with squicky details. _

Gwen lay in the bed, comfortable and safe, her hand rested on a warm, broad chest and she looked over at her sleeping lover.

Kevin had been so gentle, considerate and giving, and sweet, despite her nervousness and the panic attack she had when he'd first touched her. He had calmed her, soothed her and comforted her, reassuring her that he would not hurt her, and that she was the one who would be in control of what happened that night.

"Gwen, are you awake?" Kevin asked gently, he stroked her cheek, bending down to kiss it.

"Yes, I'm awake," Gwen smiled at him, a real, warm, genuine smile.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you smile," Kevin got up and put his clothes on. "I'll get you something to eat."

"No, I have to go," Gwen told him, she did have some things I have to do, as much as I would love to stay with you."

Did he comfort her? Yes, he was a great comfort to her, but was it just about sex? No, it was more about the intimacy and emotional healing, regaining something that had always been lost to her, control over her body and being able to make her own decisions.

"All right," Kevin did not want to leave her, so he sat down beside her and said nothing. Gwen was satisfied by his company, and leaned over and kissed his mouth tenderly.

Devlin Levin has arrived home from the Tennyson house, spending time with Kenny had been fun, they'd watched movies and played videogames the previous evening and he had had a good time with them.

Devlin took off his coat and hung it up, he wondered where his dad was, since his car was in the garage but he wasn't watching TV.

He spotted something on the table and went over to look at it.

It was a purse. A woman's purse. His dad didn't normally have women over.

He walked toward his father's bedroom; he found his father's shirt on the ground. Devlin felt disgusted.

_When did my dad start bringing women home? He's acting just like Mom did, except he's not even bothering to sneak away!_

He saw the door was shut and pressed his ear to it, he expected to hear groaning or screaming or cluster F-bombs, since that's what people say when they have sex right? He'd seen movies and had sex ed, so he knew how babies were made and all that, movies were one thing, real life seemed more squicky.

"Kevin?" a female voice asked. Devlin recognized the voice, it was Evan's mom! He had only met her once, but he remembered she was very pretty.

"Gwen," Kevin whispered. "Are you all right, last night, I didn't hurt you did I?"

"No, of course not, even though I did have flashbacks, I wanted to make love to you, you know that."

"You started panicking, I was so worried that I did something wrong," he soothed her. His father's tone of voice surprised him; just what did that mean anyway?

"I'm sorry, that was just a reaction, it's something I couldn't stop."

"You wouldn't look at me for awhile," Kevin's voice was disappointed.

"I know, you didn't do anything wrong. You were so sweet, always asking if you could touch me."

"I've been doing a lot of reading, I do want to help you heal and I just wish I could do more. I feel like I can't help you at all."

"You've helped me so much Kevin, I've missed you all these years," Gwen told him. Devlin was stunned, since when did they know each other, and why had he never seen her before?

"I think Devlin came home, I should get dressed," she told him. "I have to go soon, I have work to do you know."

"You won't stay for breakfast?" Kevin asked.

"I can't, you don't really want to have to explain this to your son do you?"

"I'll handle it, but I wish you would stay."

"I have to go, I'm sorry."

Gwen walked by Devlin, she gave him a big smile, "Hello Devlin."

The boy scowled at her. She tried her best not to show her distress at the angry look on his face.

She walked outside, "What did I do to upset him?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, it's my fault for not telling him about us, don't worry about it."

Devlin watched as they passionately kissed at the front door. It was like his father never wanted to let her go. It was infuriating to say the least; here he was seeing women without even telling his son he had a girlfriend. Kevin walked in, a smile on his lips.

"Who is she dad? Some hot chick you picked up at a club? Devlin asked sarcastically.

"Devlin, watch your mouth, Gwen is very important to me," Kevin warned. Apparently, he'd overheard some of the conversation they'd had.

"The only thing you cared about was getting in her pants! You're just like mom!"

Kevin flew into a rage, "You don't know anything do you? That woman means the world to me! I love her, and she's been through more pain than I can ever dream of! Do you understand that, Devlin?"

"Like I care," his son smirked, he got up and left, his father was disgusting, hiding a relationship from him and sleeping with a woman without even asking him if he even wanted anything like a stepmother.

She was probably going to woo dad in, take his money and run, typical pretty girl with a sob story his dad could fall for.

The only thought that seemed worse t Devlin than his father sleeping with a woman that would take his money was the horrible idea that he would marry her. She would make his life miserable and Devlin would probably be ignored.

Devlin looked at his old man, "I'm going to see Uncle Ben." He got up and walked out of the house.

"I need to see him too," Kevin looked at his son. "Don't think that we're done with this conversation."

Devlin and Kevin made their way to Ben's headquarters where Ben and Kenny were waiting for them.

"Hey Devlin, you ready to go?" Kenny called excitedly.

"Yeah," Devlin was ready to go out with Kenny and do some hero work and get his mind off things.

"Good, I need to talk to Ben," Kevin told him, he dropped Devlin off at Ben's house and went to Ben's headquarters.

"Hello Kevin," Ben said casually. "You look well."

"Ben, how would you say Gwen is?" Kevin inquired. The two cousins had always been close, so if there were any change in Gwen, he would know.

"Despite her horrible ordeal? She seems well, but it is hard to tell."

"Do you think she's happy?"

"I'm not sure, she seems happy. But she seems driven by vengeance, and it seems unlike her. I don't think she'll ever be normal again, but she has become very strong."

"That's true, my relationship with her is so different now, we're still close, but I'm so afraid I'll hurt her, and last night, well, we—"

"You made love to Gwen didn't you, Kevin?" Ben asked.

"Is it so easy for you to tell?" he asked.

"Evan told me his mother didn't come home; she had already told him she was going to see you. He was very nervous about it, I assured him that you wouldn't hurt her, and I know that as a fact. How was she?"

"Eh, what do you mean by that?" Kevin asked.

"I'm not asking about how good it was; I'm asking if she had any post traumatic stress."

"She did have a panic attack, and she wouldn't look at me, but I tried to make her as comfortable as possible."

"Gwen initiated this, didn't she?" Ben asked.

Kevin sighed, "Yes she did, and it was wonderful…"

"Ah, I see, but I wonder if she did it more for herself than for you, not that she doesn't love you, but you do know that sixteen years ago yesterday, Michael did rape her."

"Yes, I know, she told me that. I wonder if it was symbolic to her or something. I just hope that she will be happy. After this is over, I'm going ask her to marry me. "

"I'm sure that would make her happy," Ben smiled.

"I just hope that this will be over soon," Kevin contemplated quietly.

Ben couldn't agree with him more, but he had to wonder how this was going to turn out.

* * *

Gwen checked the messages on her phone; she saw the text from her cousin.

_Evan confronted Michael. Nearly got killed. Talk to him._

Gwen was displeased with her son to say the least.

Evan had gone home, dropped off by Uncle Ben.

Gwen gave her son a stern look as he stood up when she entered the living room.

"You went after him! When I strictly told you to stay away from him! Ben said he nearly killed you! ! If I lose you, I don't know what I'll do. Stay away from Michael Morningstar, do you understand me Evan?"

"Yes, Mom," he sighed.

"_Don't_ disobey me again. I'm _trying_ to keep you safe, away from him."

Gwen turned and left the room. Evan frowned. What was he supposed to do now? Maybe he'd talk to Devlin and get his mind off what had happened.

Evan decided to go to Uncle Ben's headquarters and see if Devlin was there. Maybe he could help in hero work or something. He needed a distraction.

"I'm going to see Uncle Ben," Evan told his mother.

Gwen nodded. "Remember what I told you."

He nodded and left.

Gwen made her way over to her office and saw Faria waiting for her.

"Charmcaster is here to see you Ma'am," he informed her.

"Good," Gwen put the confident, arrogant expression on her face that she wore in public.

"You need something, Charmcaster?" Gwen kept her voice friendly.

"I need a little help, a loan, I've heard you're all about helping people," she looked at Gwen, with an expression that clearly stated she was trying to weasel money out of her. Gwen assumed a flippant expression and pretended she didn't notice.

"Of course, with 10% interest, how much do you need?"

"Five million dollars," Charmcaster said.

"May I ask what it's for?" the inquiry was casual, and yet Gwen laughed to herself. No doubt her enemy would spend it on herself. Charmcaster had been rich at one time, but she spent it all and was now trying to keep up appearances.

"A business venture," was the reply she gave. Gwen knew it was a lie, but it was just what she wanted to hear.

"Pocket change," Gwen laughed. "I'll loan it to you, I'll give you a year to pay it off. And I'm being generous."

Charmcaster looked at Gwen, glad to hear her request had been accepted.

"Thank you," Charmcaster smiled. "Say, do you play chess?"

"Yes, I do," Gwen smiled. "Would you like to play?"

"Why not," sitting down across from her hated enemy, they proceeded to play. Gwen was an excellent chess player. She'd become even better as the years went by and could easily rout Charmcaster, but she downplayed her skills, to make the game interesting.

Three games and Gwen won all of them. Charmcaster looked unhappy but hid it very well.

"Here's to our business partnership," Gwen smiled. "I hope everything works out well for you."

Charmcaster left and went away feeling smug.

Gwen waited until she was long gone before she chuckled to herself.

"Fantastic! Fantastic! She's dancing in the palm of my hand!" Gwen reached over and tipped the black king over. "Check and mate, Charmcaster. I win every time."

"Now that we have official access to her bank accounts, have my boys find me anything where she has investments, I'm going to make sure that they fail, I'm going to make sure she crawls back to Michael begging for money. I've heard they still see each other."

"Yes, they see each other, and we know what that means," Faria smirked.

"The scum deserve each other," Gwen sneered. "It's only a matter of time before everything is ready."

* * *

Kenny was standing by Evan and saw Devlin walking over to them. Evan saw an expression on Devlin's face. The boy looked angry and he couldn't understand why.

"Evan, I think it's time we had a talk," Devlin glared at him.

"What about?" Evan asked.

"Your mother," Devlin snarled.

"And why?"

"Because my dad has been screwing your mom, now just what does she want from us?"

Evan glared; he wasn't going to insult his mother. Not ever again. He would make him apologize. Devlin noticed the change in Evan's attitude and it wasn't a good sign.

Kenny knew instantly, things were going to go downhill, there was a fight going to start and it wasn't going to be pretty.


	9. Red Rage

**Chapter Nine: Red Rage**

"Take it back, Devlin! Take back what you said about my mom!"

Evan moved toward him, unable to keep his temper in check.

"Considering the fact that your filthy whore of a mother puts out for my dad, what's she trying to get from him anyway. She doesn't need our money; she's got plenty of that!" Devlin sneered.

Evan didn't care that Devlin was the son of the man his mother loved, he didn't care that they were best friends. No one was going to call his mother a filthy whore again. He'd heard his "father" say those words over and over; he would not hear it from the mouth of his best friend.

"_Just shut up Devlin_," Evan roared. "I'll kill you!"

Devlin immediately transformed into his Osmosian form.

Kenny didn't have any time to react or even use his Omnitrix because Evan and Devlin were already fighting.

Devlin gripped Evan and threw him across the room of Ben's headquarters, the building was empty, Ben was out on patrol. Kevin had gone with him and Gwen was attending to her own affairs with the Dollars as she played a complicated game of real life Chess, keeping her enemies off balance as she prepared to bring their lives to a crashing halt.

Devlin attacked first, firing from his Heatblast hand. Evan managed to avoid the stream of flames as he rolled out of the way. Evan summoned his powers and shot them out at Devlin. The shards of power shattered as Devlin slashed them away with his Wildmutt claws.

Evan stared wide-eyed as Devlin fired off shards of his Diamondhead hand. He used a shield to block them. Devlin gripped him by the shoulders and threw him across the room.

Evan went through a wall and landed hard on the floor. He scrambled to his feet and constructed a giant hammer and slammed it into an enraged Devlin.

"Devlin, Evan, stop!" Kenny begged, he slapped the Omnitrix as he tried to separate them using Wildvine.

"Stay out of this Kenny!" both boys shouted, they threw him away from the two of them. Kenny flew back and hit the wall and lost consciousness.

Evan used his powers to create a giant Gatling gun out of Mana; he began firing rounds at his enemy as Devlin spewed Stinkfly's acid at him.

Devlin countered with a stream of fire and well aimed bursts of sharp Taedenite that shattered the gun.

Evan was knocked off his feet but got up and charged into the Osmosian hybrid. The two began a vicious fistfight.

The boys began punching and kicking each other. Devlin backhanded Evan across the face. Evan retaliated by elbowing him in the stomach.

Devlin head-butted Evan as the boy tried to kneed him in the gut. The teenager ignored the pain and retaliated with a flurry of punches as he started beating Evan back.

Evan suddenly used his powers, not the ones belonging to his mother, but the ones he had inherited from his father. The black glow surged around him and Devlin stared in horror.

Evan advanced on him and Devlin knew there was no way he was getting away from the strange powers.

Kenny opened his eyes and looked up as he saw his two best friends fighting. He climbed to his feet and ran over to them, he had to stop them from killing each other, but not before he sent out a signal to his father and Uncle Kevin telling them that he had an emergency. He promised himself he would do whatever it took to stop them before they both killed each other.

* * *

"That's the last of the scumbags, let's go home Tennyson," Kevin told Ben as he dispatched the last Null Void containment egg.

The two men stared at each other. Their work was over, and now they had other things to attend to.

Gwen was standing in the shadows as the other Plumbers left to go home. Kevin frowned as he sensed someone in the room with them. He hadn't seen Gwen.

"Hello Kevin," She whispered, slipping her arms around his waist from behind.

"Gwen!" he smiled, turning around, he embraced her with enthusiasm. He pressed eager, passionate kisses to her lips. He was surprised she had come out to where he was, but it was a pleasant surprise.

"Why do you seem to be in such a rush?" Gwen asked between kisses.

"I don't know how often I can see you," Kevin whispered.

"Silly, you can see me any time you want to," she laughed.

"That's not what I meant," Kevin smiled.

Kevin saw his Plumber's badge blinking. He looked down at it.

"This is Levin," he said, speaking into it.

"Uncle Kevin, Devlin and Evan, they're going to kill each other!"

"_What?"_ Kevin exclaimed.

"Devlin said stuff about Evan's mom, he got really mad and they started fighting."

Gwen and Kevin both looked at each other, this wasn't good at all, Ben was immediately beside them.

"Gwen, teleport us, now!" Ben ordered.

Gwen did so immediately and they found themselves back and Ben's headquarters, or what was left of it.

The walls were broken and full of holes. Chairs and desks and computers were broken and smashed to pieces. The two boys were in a scuffle, both of them had blood on their faces from repeated blows. Evan was standing over Devlin.

Devlin was choking, he couldn't breathe; Evan had clamped one hand around his throat. The other was going for his hand. Devlin's eyes widened when he saw it, He had the ability to drain Manna through his hands like Michael Morningstar did! He was going to die, he couldn't get away. Kenny was trying to pull Evan away but the boy wouldn't move.

"Evan Lee Tennyson, what the hell are you doing?" Gwen's voice was very angry and stern.

Devlin stared in shock. She called him Tennyson, but what did it mean? Was he related to Uncle Ben somehow?

Evan released Devlin, the glow left his eyes and he turned to face his mother.

"Son, what did you do?" Kevin demanded.

"He called my mother a filthy whore!"

Kevin backhanded him. Devlin's expression was one of disbelief. His father had never hit him before.

"You won't ever say that about _anyone_ ever again! _Especially_ Gwen! You apologize to Evan, now!"

"Why should I? What does she want from us anyway! She's just another girl with a pretty face who wants to take advantage of us!"

"Gwen, take off the ID mask, I want Devlin to see your face," Kevin told her.

Gwen removed the mask and Devlin's mouth fell open. He had always thought that Evan's mother was a pretty lady, but he had never seen scarring like what he saw then. They were not the kind that look pretty and don't change your looks; it was as if someone had put her face into a meat grinder.

"Her name is Gwen Tennyson, she is Ben's cousin, she is someone that I've loved for years and I was going to marry her before you were born, Devlin. She was supposed to be your mother, but she was falsely accused of murder and taken to the Null Void where she was tortured and raped for sixteen years. If you judge her on her looks alone, you're stupid."

"And Evan, don't think I'm not going to yell at you either, you've gone too far yourself!" Gwen grabbed her son and hauled him over to the side by his ear.

Kenny watched as both Kevin and Gwen began to simultaneously yell at their children about how irresponsible and immature they were. And that they could have come to either of them for answers instead of fighting each other.

"Aren't you gonna yell at me too?" Kenny asked.

"Son, you tried to stop them from fighting, you haven't done anything that's worth yelling about."

"Dad, is Devlin gonna be okay?" Kenny asked.

"Yes, he'll be fine; he just needs a little time to himself."

* * *

Devlin walked into Uncle Ben's headquarters, he headed toward the firing range. He picked up his service weapon and walked over to where the targets were. He fired a few rounds and then examined the target. Devlin was disappointed that he hadn't hit any of his intended targets.

"Why can't I do this?" Devlin growled.

"Relax your grip, Devlin," Gwen told him, picking up a firearm. Devlin watched as she held it up with ease, took aim and headshot the targets effortlessly.

He was in awe. His dad wasn't nearly as good.

"How did you do that?"

"I did pass Plumbers basic training a long time ago," Gwen gave him a smile. "It seems like another lifetime though."

"Do you…really love my dad?" Devlin needed to know. He knew how his dad talked about her, how he adored her. He'd seen how affectionate he was with her. He needed to know if it was for real or not.

"Yes, I love your father; I have always loved your father. The night I was arrested, it was the night of my wedding rehearsal, and I was going to marry your father."

Devlin was still stunned; she could have been his mother. He had secretly resented her. His mother had also been very beautiful, lot's of adult guys had called her hot and she'd willingly flirted with them when his father wasn't there, in front of him too. And then the nasty divorce where she'd treated him like a pawn.

Then in walked "Guinevere Dantes", a smoking hot, stunning woman that his father instantly adored, apparently out of nowhere. Devlin felt that his father didn't have time to spend with him because he was always seeing her, although the one time he'd seen her before he'd found out they'd been sleeping together she'd been very friendly to him.

It seemed to Devlin that she'd been too perfect, too caring and too giving. He knew people could be genuinely nice, but he believed that she'd been trying to get his dad so she could get something from them.

His worst fear was being neglected and ignored. He'd always liked fairy tales as a kid, but he didn't like the evil step mother's. Then again, who did?

"Let's just say I buy your story, if you married my dad and live with us, how do I know you won't ignore me like I'm a nuisance?"

"You really thought I'd treat you like that?" Gwen sighed. "I always wanted to have kids, I love kids, I'm not Charmcaster, and I never have been."

Devlin stared at her in surprise. He wondered how he was supposed to think. He looked at her.

"I thought that you didn't want me around, I thought you just wanted Dad's money. I thought you were just looking for a quick buck—"

"It's okay," Gwen pulled Devlin into a hug. Devlin was shocked. He'd never gotten a hug like that before.

"I'm not going to treat you like I don't want you around."

"My Mom, never liked to give me hugs like this, she always pushed me away when I was little," Devlin sighed. Gwen pulled away, Devlin glanced around hoping no one had seen him hug her, as he was a little embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Devlin," Gwen gave him a smile. "I should have told you about my relationship with your father, but the fact that I'm alive right now is a closely guarded secret."

"Because you were framed for murder and thrown in jail and you got out," Devlin nodded. "Evan said you were planning some kind of payback."

"Yes, and I _don't_ want you kids involved in it," Gwen was serious, but only briefly, as she began to laugh.

"I'm sorry I called you a whore," Devlin apologized.

"It's all right, Devlin," Gwen looked relaxed. "You didn't mean it."

"Come on, I'll get you something to eat, I'm starving! Whatever you want."

"Really?" Devlin asked.

"Yes," Gwen nodded to Faria. "Take Devlin to the car, I'll be out in a minute."

Devlin was gone; Gwen began walking out to join him.

"It's nice to see the two of you bonding," Kevin spoke up from where he'd been standing out of sight.

"Considering the fact that this was your idea, I think it turned out well. Are you sure you don't want to come with us Kevin?"

"I'm fine, you two should spend time together," Kevin laughed. "Go on, he'll be getting impatient."

Gwen leaned over and kissed him quickly. "I'll see you later." She turned and left.

* * *

Maxwell Tennyson was busy working on his computer; he had a lot of work to do. He was investigating his daughter's botched murder trial and imprisonment. Even if she was dead, he would clear her name, he wouldn't rest until the Plumber's organization declared her innocent.

His hands flew over keys searching the Extranet for anything concerning Gwen Tennyson. He stared at the screen in shock; there was a photograph of Gwen! He glanced at the date on the photo as he did a double take. The picture was dated_ after_ Gwen was said to have died.

This was it! This was his big break. Max saved the file to his computer, and made several backup copies. He sent one to Magister Hulka because he was a friend of Gwen's as well.

He was close to finding the truth; he knew it in his heart. He wanted to know what was going on. Max sensed a presence behind him.

"So you're Magister Morrg's goons aren't you?" Max asked. "I'm not surprised."

Maxed moved to where he had hidden his Plumbers issue firearm. He removed both quickly. "But I've been ready for you for a long time."

Max Tennyson collapsed in front of his trailer. The blood began to pool beneath him. He pushed a button on his Plumber's badge, but he only made sure it was the secure frequency that he had customized for Ben and Kevin and Gwen.

Ben received the signal and dropped everything making his way towards his grandfather's trailer. He saw Grandpa Max's body and quickly chose XLR8, as he scooped up his body.

"Hang on, Grandpa! Don't die!" Ben pleaded. He arrived at the hospital. But it wasn't any ordinary hospital, it was one that Gwen owned and it was staffed with members of the Dollars.

He looked up and saw Gwen standing in the Hospital hallway.

"I already got his signal. Who did this to him?" she demanded.

"I'm not sure, but from what I could tell, the weapons used were Plumbers issue."

"Morrg," Gwen growled. "Grandpa must have found something about me they didn't want him to."

"I thought he destroyed all the evidence."

"Not all of it, I've found plenty of it myself. But they attacked Grandpa!" Gwen's face was filled with rage. "They won't get away with this! I have to go!"

"Where are you going?" Ben asked. Kevin had just arrived and stared at her as she was leaving.

"To accelerate my plans," she replied. "I've been forced to move them up, I had been hoping to bide my time, but not anymore!"

Gwen walked away from them.

"Things are going to get ugly," Kevin remarked.

* * *

Charmcaster frowned, the loan she'd gotten from Guinevere Dantes was started to dwindle, she was trying to come up with a plausible excuse to extend the loan.

"Ma'am, this letter arrived for you," her butler handed her the note.

She opened it.

_You are cordially invited to a funeral. The location of the funeral as a Bellwood Community Church. Please be there at 5:00 PM._

_Signed,_

_Gwen Tennyson_

Charmcaster gasped in horror as she stared at the name.

"It's impossible! Gwen Tennyson is dead!" She crumpled the note, but not before looking at the directions.

The next day she made her way to the church. To her surprise, Michael and Morrg were waiting for her.

"Did you get one of these too?" she asked Michael.

"Yes, it seems lovely Gwen can't stop being a part of our lives, even from beyond the grave."

"That's not funny Michael!" Charmcaster screamed.

"I want to know how this person knows about her; after all, we made sure no one can find her."

What if she's a ghost, come back to haunt us from the grave?" Morrg asked.

"Don't be silly, she's escaped and now she's plotting her revenge!" Charmcaster shouted.

"Relax Charmcaster, we've not seen anyone matching her description anywhere, she's too broken to pit herself against us, besides, no one would believe her since she was convicted of murder and none of the evidence we showed at her trial can be proven to be false," Morrg laughed.

"Still, she's out there somewhere," Michael smirked.

"But if she's not dead, then who's in the coffin?" Charmcaster asked.

Charmcaster used her powers to remove the lid. The three of them gasped in horror. It was the body of the man that had raped Gwen along with Michael Morningstar, they had never learned his name, nor did they care, but the fact that he was in the coffin made it quite clear that this person knew who he was.

"She's come back to kill us all!" Morrg exclaimed.

"She's probably dead; you said there was a prison riot in the Incarcecon where she was interred. We have nothing to fear from a ghost, put it out of your mind."

"Let's get out of here! This was a waste of time!" Charmcaster left, Morrg and Michael soon followed. It was an hour before a lone figure walked into the room.

She began to clap. "King of the moment, eh, Charmcaster. I make the first move. It's time I dealt with Morrg."

Gwen turned and left. Tonight it would all begin.


	10. Torn Asunder

**Chapter Ten: Torn Asunder**

Maxwell Tennyson had been searching for answers for years. Through every known database in the galaxy for any information on Gwen's innocence. He knew she had done nothing wrong, they all did, but she had been sent to the Null Void. Ben, Kevin and the other Plumber's Kids had been planning to spring her from jail and help her go into hiding when it had been announced that she'd died in prison.

Will Harague had jumped all over this story, calling the entire Tennyson family a lot of murdering, treacherous scumbags. Kevin had gotten wasted, Cooper had joined him in his endeavors, Julie had cried herself to sleep, Emily had gone over to see her and they both reminisced about their friend. Even Sunny was stunned into silence. Magister Hulka had decided to launch an internal investigation that was still ongoing fifteen years after one of his finest students had been declared dead.

_"She's a standup kinda girl, no way someone with her morals is gonna kill somebody, the kangaroo barreled into the courtroom full of idiots."_

Max lay in a hospital bed, because he had discovered a long-buried secret that would save his granddaughter's life after sixteen years.

Max had been there for a week until Ben had gotten him transferred to a Galvin doctor and he had completely recovered, but Ben told him to rest until he found who had attacked him.

Maxwell saw a young man standing outside his door. He had white hair and bright blue eyes.

"My name is Leroy, the leader of the Dollars sent me, she said to come to the Plumber's meeting tonight, she said you want answers about what's going on."

Leroy tossed him something. Max looked at it. It was a hair band, something that he'd given Gwen.

"Where'd you get this?" Max demanded.

"You'll find your answers tonight."

* * *

Gwen stood in her house and slipped into nice clothes, that cost several thousand dollars, but she wore her old prison uniform from the Null Void over them.

"It's time to go," Gwen walked out. Faria followed her; he sent a text to all the important people in the Dollars, not the original group in Ikebukuro, but the members that specifically worked for her.

Gwen walked out to her limo and soon a procession of cars followed her. They drove to a hidden area where she had transport ships waiting with false security clearances to get her into the Plumbers headquarters for Earth Sector.

She pulled out an I.D. mask and placed it over her face, hiding her appearance. Gwen used her own variation of the Plumber's badge to contact her followers.

"Put your I.D. masks on, it's time for the show to start."

They landed and infiltrated the building, tranquilizing anyone in their way and putting them in energy binders and duct taped their mouths shut so they couldn't get up to warn anyone.

Leroy found the sound booth where the technician was; sometimes they showed video or holograms during their meetings. They knocked him unconscious and placed their own man there.

"You know what do and when," Gwen nodded at him.

"Yes boss," he replied.

"And this is where it begins," Gwen smiled.

* * *

Kevin saw Ben waiting for him outside his house.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"It's going to happen tonight, she contacted me. Be there, the Plumber's meeting."

"I'll be there," Kevin nodded.

Tonight was going to be really interesting.

Kevin left his house.

"Dad, where are you going?" Devlin asked.

"Just out for awhile, I have a meeting, Plumber's business." Kevin turned and left.

Devlin called Kenny. "Dude, my old man's up to something."

"What do you mean by that Dev? He's always up to something."

"He's going to a Plumber's meeting."

"So?" Kenny frowned.

"My old man hates those meetings, and I think he's trying to ditch me."

"Well, let's go and find out. It's probably gonna be a boring meeting just like they always are."

"And if it's not?" Devlin prodded.

"All right, I'll humor you!" Kenny followed his best friend. They made their way toward the Plumber base.

They found a place where they could see and hear everything but not be noticed by others.

Morrg was giving one of his long and useless speeches, ranting about how the galaxy was worse off because of the Dollars.

"It's because of them that criminals are running rampant. The alien tech black market is out of control and the drugs are being trafficked and despite our best efforts, they continue to evade us!"

"This is so boring, Kenny groaned.

"Let me show you surveillance footage of the Dollars and how brazen they've become."

Morrg gestured and the video suddenly came on, the crowd gasped in shock as they saw a figure being restrained while two men gloated over her.

Michael Morningstar was the first to speak, "_So nice of Morrg to give us the collar and the energy cuffs, now we don't have to worry about lovely Gwen's powers."_

He removed a knife and held it close to her eyes. "I could gouge out your lovely eyes, but then you wouldn't be able to look at me, and it makes me happy that you have to see me every day instead of Levin. No, I'm going to slice up your face, so even if you _did_ escape, he wouldn't take you back, Kevin only likes girls when they're smoking hot, he wouldn't ever want you."

Devlin flinched as he saw the knife blade bite deep into her skin.

"Aaaah!_ Stop! _Stop_! Please!_" Gwen screamed, but Michael sliced her face, smirking as she continued to wail in agony.

"_Just hurry up and do her, I want my turn,"_ Michael goaded the nameless thug.

"_Yeah, just let me undo my pants." _

"Ladies and Gentlemen, regardless of what happens next, you mustn't look away, not even for an instant!" The voice that spoke was female, and familiar to many in the room.

"_Stop fiddling with that stupid camera and help me hold her down, even with the restraints on, she puts up one hell of a fight!" _a man's voice growled. _"You know you want me, Tennyson! Stop screaming you little slut, just enjoy it, you know you like it."_

"_I'll kill you, beware, my revenge will be terrible when I take it!"_ Gwen shouted hoarsely.

"What's this?" Morrg shouted in terror. The entire room was watching the video.

The man slapped Gwen hard across the face.

They could see the figure clearly Gwen and she looked very terrified. She was also nude, and nothing was censored or covered at all.

"_Let's see what else we can do to her!" _Michael snarled on the other side of the camera.

"_No, no wait, please! I'll do whatever you both want, just don't rape me anymore!"_ Gwen's voice as desperate.

The man that no one recognized spoke up first.

"_Then give me a blowjob sweetheart, do a good job and maybe I'll be gentle with you."_

"_All right,"_ Gwen said, trying to keep the terror out of her voice.

"_Make sure you touch me too. I like it a lot. You know Michael, after she's done with me we should tape her doing you, send it to Levin, that'd be really funny."_

Morrg was terrified, everyone could see everything, it wasn't like on the news where you blurred or edited the video so no one would see anything, it was quite obvious what was happening and then he heard his own voice say over an intercom.

"_Hurry up and finish, I need you out before Magister Hulka gets here!"_

"_Stand up on the chair, it will give me…a better angle to do this,"_ Gwen whispered as she kissed him, shoving her tongue into his mouth.

Devlin and Kenny were trying really hard not to look at the screen, but then again, so was everyone else.

"_You're really kinky; I like that, what's with the rope?"_

"_Autoerotic asphyxiation, you know, kinky,"_ Gwen tried to sound flippant. She slipped the rope around his neck then returned to what she'd been doing earlier.

The audience's reactions were more than enough, people became visibly sick and some averted their eyes. Kevin's eyes were riveted to the screen; his fists were clenched until his palms started to bleed. To think that Michael and this other scumbag had degraded her and tortured her, filming it like it was fun. He wanted nothing more than to reach into the video and kill both of them. The fact that she was still bleeding from what they had done to her face was horrible.

"_I'm going to—"_ the man began to groan.

"_You're going to die!"_ Gwen snarled, as she suddenly shoved the chair that she had manipulated her rapist into standing on out from under him. The body started dangling as the man began choking.

"_I can't breathe, Michael, I can't breathe!"_

Michael dropped the camera and it landed awkwardly as Gwen removed her toothbrush which she had turned into a shank and stabbed Michael in the leg, the wound was very deep.

The sound of a door slamming was heard and the man continued to fight for his life.

"_No, Tennyson! Don't! Don't!"_ They heard him gasp as he was stabbed over and over again until everything was quiet; they saw the battery on the camera die as it shut off.

"It's a lie!" Morrg shouted. "Gwen Tennyson is dead! This video is a doctored lie!"

"Flatter not yourself that such is the case. An all-wise Providence permits not sinners to escape thus easily from the punishment they have merited on Earth, but reserves them to aid His own designs, using them as instruments whereby to work His vengeance on the guilty."

"Just who are you?" Morrg demanded, looking around for the source of the voice. The audience was searching for it too.

"You know me, Morrg, you know me, very well," the voice said. Suddenly, a spotlight pierced the darkened room and fell on a small, but commanding figure.

"it can't be, you're—you're supposed to be dead!" Morrg shrieked. "Why are you here?"

"I, betrayed, sacrificed, buried, have risen from my tomb, by the grace of God, to punish that man. He sends me for that purpose, and here I am."

"But it's not possible!"

"Say my name so all can hear you!" she shouted at him.

"Gwen Tennyson!" Morrg uttered. The entire room gasped in shock, not just at the admission, but at the sight of Gwen Tennyson.

The hideous scars on her face, the paleness of her skin could be seen on her body were proof that she had been a prisoner in an Incarcecon.

"O God of vengeance let your glorious justice shine forth!"

The lights in the room ignited and the entire Plumbers' organization saw that Gwen was surrounded by men in slick black suits, the emblem of the Dollars was shown on an insignia and they all knew that she was the leader of the Dollars.

With a snap of her fingers the uniform dissolved away, revealing the fine suit she was wearing and the insignia of the Dollars.

"You see Morrg, I have used the Dollars to better the galaxy, because it's you Plumber's that are making it worse. I created this because of you, because you're all corrupt hiding behind your noble speeches and pretty faces. With all your moral ambiguity betokens me to proclaim that _I_ am the future of the galaxy!"

They all knelt before her and shouted as one, _"Gwen Tennyson, Ma'am!"_

They stood to their feet and saluted her. Magister Hulka was stunned. The Dollars had infiltrated their headquarters and none of the Plumbers had any weapons on them. They couldn't fight them if they wanted to, and the Dollars were all armed with the latest weaponry.

His finest student, the head of the intergalactic mafia. He was torn between awe and horror. Still, considering what he'd just seen on the megascreen, he didn't blame her one bit.

Gwen suddenly doubled over with pain. Hulka saw a man rush to her side; he suspected he was the only male Anodite that was known to exist. He couldn't recall his name, but it was rumored he had escaped the Null Void too. So that was what he was doing now.

There was a camera that easily showed that Gwen was holding in her hand anti-inflammatory medicine. The Plumbers knew immediately that the video they'd seen was true and the scars on her face didn't lie.

Max Tennyson was there as well. He felt like it was all a horrible, terrible nightmare that he would wake up from, but he knew that it wasn't, his body shook with a rage that there were no words to describe. He rushed straight at Morrg.

"You let her rot in that place and let those monsters rape my granddaughter you despicable, disgusting freak!" Max began to slam his fists into the alien's face. Over and over, he wanted to make him pay.

"Someone, make him stop!" Morrg pleaded.

"How many times did I call for help with no answer?" Gwen sneered. "No one was there to help me, and no one here wants to help the likes of you."

"It was because of you; I was born and raised in that hellhole!" Evan shouted, the focus turned to him, and Max took a glance at the boy and knew who he was, the resemblance was too much for him to not know what had happened.

"I should kill you! Put you down like the rabid dog you are!" Max was about to strangle him.

"No, Grandpa, he can't suffer if he's dead, well, he would go to Hell, but that's too easy."

"You must be proud, Gwen Tennyson," Morrg coughed loudly. "You are a bright and shining beacon of justice, a hero and savior of the galaxy."

"Proud?" Gwen screamed in his ears. "You think I'm _proud_ of what I am? I'm the villain protagonist of this story, you idiot! I have become everything I ever fought against. Look at what you have created. A God of Vengeance to pass judgment on you. Look at me! The monster inside me is getting bigger! I have done nearly everything in my power to bring about our reunion. There are few lines I haven't crossed. The very actions that I once despised I embrace, and everything that I have believed in has been transformed into nothing but empty lies."

"She quoted Johan Liebert," Kenny gulped. "We should run away now."

"I remember that anime, that guy made my dad look sane, really, _really _sane," Devlin agreed.

She gestured to a curtain that was pulled away to reveal piles and piles of money. Warden Morrg gasped, it was the sum total of all his wealth converted into Earth cash.

"I watched my life go up in flames, now it's your turn. Killing you would be too easy. Living and knowing you've lost everything is so much worse." Gwen began pacing in front of him, "But I have made it even more humiliating for you. Not only will you see everything you cherish destroyed, but all the people you ever put in the Incarcecon will see it too!"

Gwen gestured and revealed that Morrg was surrounded by the same people he had imprisoned. He was quaking with fear. How could one human woman do the impossible and expose the corruption that he worked so hard for years to conceal? She'd almost single-handedly stolen his wealth and shattered his reputation as an upholder of justice.

"I don't feel sorry for you Morrg," Ben Tennyson's voice rang out. "You hurt her, and that's an understatement. You forced her to do something that I never thought was possible and you've turned her into a criminal, but when you goad her to do the impossible, she'll do it. I for one have been waiting for someone to knock you off your high horse for years. I just never dreamed it would be _her_."

"Tonight is a day of infamy in the history of the Plumbers. Tonight, the villain won." Gwen walked over and brought out a lighter and a full gallon of gasoline.

She ignited the lighter and threw it on the money. Morrg began to scream, "That's my money! You can't do this to me!"

Gwen turned on rows and rows of monitors, showing various opulent houses, located on various planets. "These are all the houses you bought with your ill-gotten money. All of these properties belong to me, and I'm getting rid of them!"

"But you'll lose billions of dollars by destroying them. If you're going to take everything I own, at least make use of it!" Morrg simpered at her feet, whimpering like a pathetic fool.

"I _am _making good use of it; I'm using it to humiliate you. Burn it all down!" Gwen threw the lighter into the stack of money and the flames began to lick the paper, reducing it to ashes. Simultaneously, men set fire to all of Morrg's houses, all that could be hear was the sound of buildings being set aflame.

"It's a beautiful sound, isn't it boys? The sound of vengeance as Providence punishes the wicked with retribution worthy of their crimes. Drink it in, and enjoy it, it's not every day that corrupt officials taste their own medicine."

Kevin was slack-jawed. He'd heard stories about getting even, but this was the most well thought out, exquisitely planned vengeance he had ever seen in his life. "I'm utterly speechless!"

_"Tennyson! Tennyson! Tennyson!"_

Kevin and Ben watched as she casually took a deep puff of her $1,000 bill cigarette and tossed it into the burning inferno. Devlin and Kenny were watching from their hiding place and thought it was the most badass thing they'd ever seen in their teenage lives. Why did she have to make being the head of the intergalactic mafia look _so freaking cool_?

"We better split before our dad's catch us," Devlin said.

"Hello son," Kevin spoke behind them.

"Oh, man!" both boys groaned.

"Do you want to go see her?" Kevin asked.

"Yes!" they eagerly answered. Kevin led them to where Gwen was.

Ben and Kevin stood by and watched her as she spoke to thin air. "I shouldn't feel so happy. I have ruined a man's reputation, desruoyed his livelihood and sentenced him to an eternity of despair and loneliness. But I'm so giddy, I feel like I'm ten years old on Christmas, it's like the high school graduation or how I feel on my birthday. I conquered him, I _won._ But I can never rejoin the Plumbers; I can't get my old life back. How can I go back to normal when I am a monster both inside and out? What would Kevin see in me that he would want? I can repair my face with surgery, but it's not the same! What can I give him? My body? I couldn't even look at him the night I made love to him! I probably disappointed him, but he'll never tell me!"

"Gwen, if I cared about how you look, I would have left you the night of our reunion," Kevin told her; she hadn't even realized he was there.

"This is your story, don't you forget that. So what if you're the villain protagonist and you win. Pay evil unto evil. There are no heroes here, no squeaky clean knights in shining armor. When I mutated because of the Omnitrix a long time ago you didn't care about my looks. You loved me for who I was. I love you for what you have always been, a strong and good person who always saw the best in people."

"And if you honestly must know, I love you so much, I am happier with you more than anyone I have ever been with and I have had a few girlfriends in my life. And the happiest I have ever been is with you. Don't ever think otherwise. I have you and that's all that matters to me."

"Please stop lying to me!" she raged, "Stop feeding me the words I want to hear, tell me something honestly for once!"

"I am not lying to you. What I've told you is the truth."

"This fair, you both are supposed to stop me...I'm the evil that you are fighting against. I shouldn't...it's not..."

"There's too much black and black morality in the Plumbers now. Ben may be a saint over there, but this will end when you are finished, and I say that you're justified, and if you must be punished then it can fall on me."

"He's right, as much as I hate to say it, everything we all fought for is gone, I don't really believe in anything anymore," Ben sighed. "The world has been turned on its ear and nothing is the truth."

"I...I..." Gwen broke down in tears and flung herself into Kevin's awaiting arms. He comforted her and soothed her with calming words and let her cry.

"I'm sorry you had to see that video, Kevin," she whispered.

"You did whatever it took to survive, it was disgusting, but you're still here and that reprehensible scumbag is dead."

"I know, Ben you shouldn't have let Kenny and Devlin come here, I didn't want them to see that either."

"I didn't they snuck in."

Gwen finally wiped her eyes and gathered her composure. "It's bittersweet I know, but at least Providence has punished him. From now on, I will no longer feel guilty for what I will do. I _will_ make them pay. It's time I stopped living in regret."

"I have made my decision," he told them, "Something I've been dreading for a long, long time."

"What's that?" Kevin asked.

"I'm leaving the Plumber's. They attacked Grandpa Max. We will make them pay."

"I am leaving too," Kevin agreed.

"But Kevin, being a Plumber was your dream," Gwen told him.

"My dream became a nightmare when they took you away from me," Kevin's eyes became hard. "This is not the organization my father fought and died for. And it's too broken to be fixed."

"We're with our old man, we're leaving," Devlin chimed in. "If we're going to be painted as the bad guys, we might as well get the quitting part over with."

Gwen reached out and ruffled Devlin's hair affectionately. He blushed from embarrassment.

"Hello Kenny," Gwen hugged him. He was stunned that this was the same lady who ruled the intergalactic mob with an iron fist as was feared by every criminal who knew anything about alien tech.

"Is everyone here Ben?" Gwen asked her cousin.

"Yes," Ben opened the door.

Max rushed into her arms and wept. "Pumpkin, it's so good to see you! I have to tell your mother—"

"No, grandpa, what I'm doing is too dangerous; I don't want her to know about me, not until after this is over. It's enough that I told you everything."

"But it's not right, she doesn't even know she has a grandson," Max sighed.

"The timing isn't right," Gwen sighed, she hugged her grandfather a little longer.

The rest of the Plumber's helpers walked in. "It's time to get rid of them," Manny added. "Just tell us what to do."

Gwen composed herself and straightened her shoulders. "We're going to do the impossible. We're going to declare war and destroy the Plumbers."

* * *

Later Gwen saw Morrg as he was now dressed in a prison uniform instead of his Plumber's uniform.

He looked up at her, "Have you come to gloat?" he asked.

She handed him a Plumber's firearm, he knew there was no way he could shoot her as she would deflect it with her powers. She saw the doors of the transport shut as it prepared to depart for an Incarcecon, his old incarcecon, which had new staff, all people that hated him and worked for her, there was no one he would be able to bribe and all the droids had been replaced with various alien species.

Morrg couldn't stand the idea of returning to his old prison as a prisoner, not like before, he'd rather die than go back there. He pulled the trigger. He was horrified when nothing happened.

"You didn't think I'd make it that easy did you?" Gwen asked. "The fiery torments of the eternal Hell are too nice for someone like you. I will give you eternal suffering and remorse, but without the fire and brimstone. The demons don't get to have their fun yet."

She shouted to the pilot. "Get him out of here!"

The ship pulled away. Gwen watched him leave as the others gathered around her. "_One_."


	11. Familial Ties

**Chapter Eleven: Familial Ties**

_Author's Note:__ I am trying an experiment and I'm writing this fanfic using speech recognition with a microphone. I hope that this will work well so that I can update my stories faster because I won't have to type so much, please tell me if it reads better. Please enjoy this new chapter._

* * *

Gwen Tennyson sat down in a chair as she rubbed her forehead as she sighed, it had been a long day and she was in a foul mood. The Dollars hadn't been able to find anything that could be useful to her when it came to Charmcaster's finances and knew she was losing patience, but she had to bide her time because this would only work when the timing was right. But she hated waiting.

Gwen hadn't seen Kevin in after it two days; he had been busy fighting more aliens as they broke out of the Null Void, which was a common occurrence. Ben 10,000 had searched for Michael Morningstar, but he had disappeared again terrified of the experience he had at Gwen's supposed funeral, horrified that her ghost would haunt his nightmares, although he didn't believe she was alive. He didn't know Warden Morrg was in an Incarcecon cell.

"What did you find it about Charmcaster's money; do you have access to all of it?"

"Yes Boss, But we don't know what you want us to do," Leroy said.

"I'll tell you what you have to do when I'm ready," Gwen replied, "Meanwhile, you won't do anything without my approval, understand?"

"Of course, Boss, do you have any work for me today?"

"Yes, Michael Morningstar has been getting bolder, we captured some of his gang, I need you to have a "conversation" with them, but you don't get to kill them, I want him to tell me everything knows, don't go overboard."

"Of course, it seems you're having too much fun with this," Leroy smirked.

"_You're_ having too much fun here; I only let you indulge in your psychopathic tendencies because they benefit me."

"I only wish to be of service, after all I am paid well for this," Leroy smirked.

"It's always about the money for you isn't it?"

"If you didn't pay me so well I wouldn't be here, and there are bonuses when it comes to working with you, we all get what we want in the end. Of course, you get the nice end of all this. You've got a lot of money and a nice boyfriend too. No wonder they were jealous of you."

"Yes they were, they took me and dumped me in hell, I have dealt with one of them, only two are left, and that's where you come in."

"I guess I'll be going," Leroy turned to leave.

To his surprise, Gwen got up and followed him.

"It's time we get going, Giovanni," Gwen looked at the man she had referred to as Leroy in public but only she knew his true name.

He raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"It's funny that you're not calling me Leroy," Giovanni looked at her, "Considering the fact that you gave me that name."

"I know, but your part in this is all very important, you know," Gwen smiled. "Remember I've made you what you are, don't think I can't take it away."

"Of course, but I thought you'd be a little bit nicer to me, after all, I _am_ the age of your own son."

"Yes, and I am aware of that," Gwen smirked. "Be glad I found you in penal colony or you'd be in the mines of Saturn or some other distant planet for the rest of your life."

"But hooking up you, I get to indulge in my psychotic urges and you get yourself a top notch interrogator," Giovanni chuckled. "But you offered me revenge for what my parents did to me, burying me alive I was a baby."

"Yes, we'll get our revenge." The expression on her face filled him with an indescribable terror.

You aren't lying to me are you?" Giovanni asked. His boss, beautiful and powerful, and resourceful, still puzzled him.

"I've done many things in my life, but I didn't get to where I am by lying to people, I keep my word, and if you must have proof I brought the DNA tests," Gwen slapped down the papers.

Giovanni took them and looked them over, "I've seen both of them, why didn't you tell me it was the two of them?"

"It's not time yet," Gwen told him calmly.

Giovanni lurched forward, looking as if he were about to lunge at her a fit of rage.

Gwen calmly reached out and twisted his arm around and slammed him into the table. "You should learn to control your temper!"

"Don't think I can't overpower you, perhaps—"

Gwen summoned her powers, creating a sharp blade and holding it to his throat. "I don't usually kill people, but for rapists, I make an exception. Why should I spare your life?"

"I—I'm sorry," Giovanni stammered. "Boss, forgive me. I was just angry. I'd never do something like that to you, I swear."

"I accept your apology, but should you even speak another threat to me, I will kill you, and as punishment for this little incident today—" Gwen cut him across the face.

"Don't worry, it won't scar, but it will hurt," Gwen glared at him. "And to think you'd been doing so well."

"I got tired of playing the loyal puppy dog," Giovanni smirked.

"But _I'm_ the one who holds the leash, don't forget that."

"We're clear as crystal Boss," Giovanni was much calmer and the expression on his face was admiration. "If only were older, I could fall for a girl like you."

"Sixteen and you're a pervert," Gwen glared at him. "Go; contact the men who are running Charmcaster's assets, tell them to make sure she loses everything!"

"I could treat you like my own mother," Giovanni suggested.

Gwen slapped him across the face.

"But Boss I hold you in the highest respect, in many ways you are the mother I wish I could have."

"And you have such a fine way of showing it, now get out of my sight!"

"Yes Boss," Giovanni nodded. He turned and left.

Kevin walked in. He glared at Giovanni. "I saw what he did. How can you keep him around?"

"He's part of my revenge, which is the only reason he's working for me."

Kevin put a hand on her shoulder. "I'll keep my eye on him; I didn't know you'd gotten a psycho for hire."

"Thanks," she gave him a smile.

"Just who is this Giovanni?" Kevin asked.

"That is a long story," Gwen smiled. "I'll take the time to tell it to you."

* * *

_The white haired young man wiped the sweat off his forehead as he continued to dig, searching for Bicenthium Alloy. Giovanni Andrea had an infamous criminal career, he'd become a con artist, a thief and an all around criminal, he had murdered an alien in a deal gone bad and was sentenced to the mines on Saturn. _

_"Come on, Giovanni, you have a visitor," Magister Prior Gilhil told him. He put him in binders and led him to the visitor's area._

_Giovanni saw a beautiful woman with dark brown hair sitting with her fingers steeped and her expression, inviting, but very serious._

_"It's been forever since I've seen a lady, let alone one as pretty as yourself," Giovanni greeted her suavely, "What's your name?"_

_"Ellie," she replied._

_"Ellie…?" he fished for her last name._

_"My last name's not important. But I have a proposition for you."_

_"What would that be? I have all the sorts of people asking me to do things for them, but you can see I am incarcerated so I can't exactly do anything inside this cell. But you seem well connected; can you get me out of here?"_

_The girl calling herself Ellie looked at him with an indescribable gaze, it was as if she could see what he was a really thinking, it chilled him to the bone. Who was she? He'd never heard of her before. Judging from the nice suit she was wearing, she had a lot of money and a lot of money meant that perhaps she could get him out of there, he didn't like living in the colonies of Saturn, the mines were hell and he'd do anything to leave._

_"I know someone who can offer you a very job of for the "things" you like to do, my associate could use your skills in her organization."_

_"And what organization that?" Giovanni asked. "I've worked for them all, and they all got rid of me when I was no longer useful to them."_

_"Have you ever heard of the Dollars?"_

_"Who hasn't heard of them? They are the most powerful criminal organization in the known universe. Why would I want to join them, they're probably just like every other criminal organization around, I've heard that she can break people at a prison, but I don't really believe it, it's just a story criminals like to tell."_

_"She can get you out of here, but only if you'll work for her, she'll pay you whatever you want, but you must do whatever she says."_

_"How do I know she'll really keep her word and get me out of here?" Giovanni asked, still skeptical all this was too to be true, was he really going to leave, or was this just a silly whim of his imagination?_

_Ellie gave a sly smile, "Miss Gwendolyn always keeps her promises."_

_"Gwendolyn, you mean Gwen Tennyson? I heard she was dead."_

_"Is she really dead?" _

_A realization washed over Giovanni and he stared in awe. It was _her_, in the flesh, she had gall to walk into a prison after she had incarcerated for 16 years._

_"How do I know you're really Gwen Tennyson?" Giovanni questioned, hiding his admiration for the girl. The most powerful criminal in the galaxy had just waltzed into a prison like it was nothing. It took a lot to impress him, but needless to say he was very impressed, but if this woman could keep her word he gladly work for her. Still, she'd have to keep her end of the bargain and get him out of prison and off Saturn. No small feat there, only God could pull off a miracle like that._

_"So you're interested in working for us, you'll be out within a week, I'll see you around Leroy."_

___"But that's not my name!" Giovanni exclaimed._

_"It's what I'm going to call you from now on, after all you don't want people to know that Giovanni Andrea the notorious torturer is a part of the Dollars now would we?"_

_Giovanni wasn't sure she actually keep her promise, but within a week he heard that the Incarcecon had received papers notifying the warden that Giovanni Andrea was to be released from the Incarcecon. He walked out of there a free man, although he figured that the papers were forged, when Gwen showed it to him, he was shocked that they were forgeries because they looked so legitimate that he couldn't tell the difference._

_At first, although he admired Gwen, he was very put off when that he wasn't allowed to kill anyone, after all criminal organizations to kill their rivals, didn't they? But slowly he came to understand how she thought and why she did what she did. They didn't have a friendly relationship but they did understand each other, and he followed her without question because he yet knew she could put him back into the mines of Saturn any time he stepped out of line._

_Gwen had told him that he was very important to her schemes and at first he thought it was just about him torturing people, then she had revealed something that he didn't know, she knew who his birth parents were._

_He had pestered her for the answers, but he wasn't willing to give him the answers he wanted. And so he continued to work for her, he was in her debt and so he was grateful to be free._

* * *

"I can't believe you hired him, he's worked for every known criminal organization in the galaxy, he enjoys cold-blooded torture; how can you let him work for you?" Kevin asked, shocked.

"Well this _is _a criminal organization after all, what did you expect?" Gwen retorted.

"I just didn't think you hire people who were so…ruthless, I mean, I'm not exactly squeaky clean myself, but had not nearly as bad as they are—known murderers work for you!" Kevin had heard Giovanni Andrea, he was well known to the Plumber's because of his criminal career, but he had never imagined he was working for Gwen. That was an unwanted surprise.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get revenge! No matter what I have to do to get it, or who I have to manipulate, they will pay for what they did to me!"

"So do you actually care about Devlin, or are you just manipulating him to get back at Charmcaster because she married me?" Kevin was worried; he didn't like this side of her at all.

"I'm not manipulating Devlin, I love him like I love Evan," Gwen glared at him. "If I were manipulating him, _you_ would know, because you know me better anyone."

"All right, I believe you," Kevin conceded. "I'd better let you go; it seems you to have somewhere you have to be. Ben just called; Vilgax had showed his face on earth again. I have to go."

Gwen watched him leave; she left the building and had Faria drive her to the warehouse where the prisoner was tied He was working for Michael Morningstar and that this was just the opportunity Gwen wanted to get to him. All she needed to do was break one of his flunkies, and everything Michael built would come tumbling down. She was looking forward to this.

"He really went to work on you didn't he?" she asked. "I can make him stop, all you have to do is tell me I want to know about Michael's plans."

Walking through the door she looked at Leroy, who had blood on his hands. He'd been beating he crap out of him, his face was a mess and he was covered in his own blood, he was also missing some of his teeth, Gwen also noticed his fingernails were missing. She knew just how badly it hurt; Michael had ripped out her fingernails when he had tortured her. She felt a twinge of sympathy, it vanished two seconds later.

"Okay, okay!" he exclaimed. "I'll tell you everything! I know all his plans! I just want to live!"

"Nice to know you're going to cooperate with us," Gwen turned to Leroy, "Take him to the Null Void and place him in solitary confinement in the Incarcecon. My business is done here."

"But I've told you everything I know!" he pleaded, "You were supposed to let me go!"

"I said I'd make him stop, I never said I would let you go."

Members of the Dollars came in and took the mobster away; Gwen felt a ghastly smile pull at her lips. Everyone was dancing in the palm of her hands, just like she had had planned it.

Gwen was walking towards her car, when she heard a voice call her name; "Guinevere!" she turned and stared at the man she hated more anyone in the world. She took a deep breath and forced herself to remain calm and collected. She smiled Michael, "Can help you, Michael?"

She was relieved, her men were long gone and all the signs they had been in there were erased.

"I was hoping to do business with you, I've heard you're quite wealthy," Michael had a greedy expression on his face, he was just like Charmcaster, Gwen was right, the scum _did_ deserve each other. But she wouldn't pass up this chance for anything. This was just the opening she had been looking for. Now she could get some of her men on the inside of his gang and spy on his operations without being noticed.

"Of course, I'll do business with you, but only if you'll let me buy 50% of your company, with my business savvy I could help you get your company in the black, I heard you have a lot of debt."

"It's a deal!" Michael eagerly agreed, getting money was his number one priority and he didn't care where it came from. Gwen wanted to laugh, what a fool he was, falling for her trick so easily. He didn't even ask questions about her.

After he left, Gwen couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

It was late at night, and Gwen had finally drifted off to sleep. She thought she heard a noise, she had heard it for awhile now and it had become increasingly louder over time. She woke with a start and looked around. Gwen got to her feet and pulled and some clothes.

She grabbed her Plumber's firearm and prepared to use it. She heard a loud, agonized scream and started running toward the noise. She made her way down to the basement and opened the door.

There was a young man, about three years her senior, with dark brown hair and sea green eyes like her own. He was in severe pain and looked like he had been tortured by her men, the defiant expression on his face told her everything, she immediately knew who he was; there was only one family in the world whose expression could convey so much.

The man being tortured was Kenneth Tennyson, her older brother. Gwen lost control as she flew into a rage. Someone was going to die.


	12. The Email

**Chapter Twelve: The E-Mail**

_**Author's Note: **__Sorry I've been away so long, I haven't been writing this as I've been writing Teen Titans, but I'm back and I just finished watching_ _Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo, so now I have my motivation to update this again too. Rating has also been upped to M, due to mature, adult themes, not necessarily lemons, if you want to write one for this let me know, I'll add it into this chapter. If I try to write one I'll epic fail so I don't write them. I used speech recognition to write this chapter. And yes, part of it does make me squick out._

Gwen Tennyson couldn't believe what her men were doing to her older brother Ken. What was he doing here anyway? Did he know who she was? She hadn't even seen him since she had returned to Bellwood. She grabbed the closest man to her and gripped the man's throat and shoved him into the burning fireplace which had been stoked as they burned Ken's face with an iron poker.

"Why are you doing this?! We caught him snooping around and we didn't want to bother you, we didn't have time to go get Leroy, we thought we'd had lived ourselves!" they protested.

"You didn't recognize who he was; you didn't notice he resembled me?!" she screamed in their ears. Gwen looked over her brother, who was almost unconscious, he recognize her voice immediately.

"Sorry, boss we didn't know who he was, honestly!" they told her, Gwen no longer heard them, their fate was sealed. She used her Manna to grip them and forced them onto their knees.

"You have no excuse!" Gwen snarled. "I clearly showed you pictures of my family, and to stay away from them and not bother them no matter where they were."

"We're sorry!" They pleaded. They knew she wouldn't spare them after this blunder. All they could do was beg for their lives.

Gwen raised her gun and fired, two shots, they were dead they hit the ground. She used her Plumber's badge and called her men to remove the bodies. She made her way over to Ken and untied the ropes.

"I knew it was you," Ken whispered, he looked exhausted. Gwen began wiping his face with a cloth. He looked a lot better now that the blood was gone.

"How did you find me?" Gwen asked, surprised that he had recognized her even told she wore various disguises to conceal her identity.

"I saw you with Julie Yamamoto, I'd be an idiot if I couldn't recognize my own sister," Ken actually smiled.

"Why did you break in to my house?" Gwen helped him to his feet and up the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Gwen, what happened to your face?" Ken was shocked at her appearance. "Did those men do that to you?"

"No, but others did," Gwen replied, she got him something to eat. He ate it eagerly; he hadn't eaten anything all night. He didn't ask her questions, he was starving and she knew he needed to get strength back.

After he had finished his plate Ken finally looked her, "I thought you were dead, Gwen why didn't you contact us? Mom and dad and I have been grieving for years."

"Because of what I'm doing isn't safe," she replied. "I am the head of the most notorious criminal organization on planet earth and in the known galaxy. The people who are after me will go after them if they know about me. I'll see them again when this is all over. It's already bad enough that you and Grandpa Max know. You have to promise me not to tell them. Promise me, Ken!"

"Where have you been for sixteen years? This isn't the Gwen I grew up with, you never hidden secrets from us, okay you had some the secrets, but nothing like this!"

The door opened and Evan walked into the kitchen, Ken's eyes widened as he looked at his nephew for the first time.

"They raped you in prison?" he asked, horrified. He had never felt so helpless in his life; it was just as bad as when they had heard the guilty verdict at her trial.

"Yes, but I don't want you involved, I told you what I told Kevin, I'm not going to kill him, death is too good for him. I'm going to make him suffer.

"Is it that Michael Morningstar, guy? He was obsessed with you."

"Evan, this is your Uncle, Kenneth Tennyson, my older brother."

Ken pulled his nephew into a fierce hug, as he began to cry.

"I had hoped to leave out of this, how did they catch you?"

"I came by earlier but you weren't home, so I waited around and tried to knock on the door but nobody answered, I waited until you came home to wanted to say something but you went inside before I had a chance to get your attention so I snuck in through a window but two men caught me and dragged me into the basement."

"I told them who I was and that I was your older brother, but they didn't believe me, I even told them something only I would know about you, they burned me with an iron poker instead, insisting I was a spy for Michael Morningstar. They beat me pretty bad, but then you arrived and saved me."

"I'm glad that you're safe now, how are mom and dad?" Gwen was curious about how her parents were doing without her.

"They are doing all right, but mom lost her job and they've been struggling financially, they're trying to pay off the house, mom's been looking for a new job but hasn't been able to find one."

"You don't have to worry about mom; I'll take care of her, and how about you? Are you doing all right besides what happened tonight?"

"My band has been doing well, we managed to score a good gig and we got an agent, we haven't hit it big but we will."

"I own a record company, I'll get you signed. I know how a talented you are and I want to see you succeed." Gwen handed him a piece of paper, "tell him Guinevere Dantes sent you. You'll have your record contact by tomorrow."

"But I've heard of the Dollars, and I know they are a criminal organization, I can't get involved with you're doing!" Ken protested.

"This isn't connected to the Dollars; this is a legitimate record company that I own that I brought with money I legally earned. I wouldn't get you into legal trouble," Gwen gave him a smile.

Ken was overwhelmed with joy, he had both a nephew and the record deal he had only dreamed of, and his little sister he loved return from the dead.

"Can I…spend time with Evan?" Ken looked at his nephew.

"Of course you have can, just don't tell mom and dad that he's your nephew, just say that he's the son of the person who got you your record deal."

"All right, I'll keep your secrets, but you a better explain this to me one of these days."

"Ken, do you need me to take you to the hospital? I can have Faria drive you there."

Her butler walked in, and looked at her, "do you need me to be at something for you, Ma'am?"

"I can't believe you live in this enormous house, this is the complete opposite of what I imagine you living in."

"Don't worry; once my revenge is over I'll be selling this house and everything in it." Gwen got up and gave her brother a hug. He got up and left overwhelmed with everything that had happened to him.

"Ken, stay away from Michael Morningstar, I'm going to deal with him myself. If you go after him and you say anything about me it'll tip him off. This is between him and me do you understand?"

Faria looked at him, "I'll take you to the hospital now, no one will find you there since she owns it she can hide your identity."

Gwen watched him leave and sighed, for all the secrets she was trying to hide from everyone were being uncovered pretty fast. She had to do better if she didn't want Michael or Charmcaster discovering who she was, she would never let him find out who she was unless she wanted them to.

But to have the people around her discovering the truth is so quickly made her uneasy. Gwen would have to work harder to preserve everything she was trying to hide.

Next on her agenda was Charmcaster and Gwen knew she loved her wealth and status. All that money was going to fly off like it had the wings of a bird. All she had to do was manipulate the stock market is so that all her assets lost money. It would be easy, just a few texts and it would be done, but not just yet, she wanted to make sure that they could feel the pain of losing everything, so she'd make sure that they would see an amazing amount of profit before she shredded the proverbial floor beneath them.

She composed an e-mail him her men that worked and the intergalactic stock market. Gwen told them exactly what to do and that they were to wait until she gave them further instructions.

Faria entered the room. "Kevin Levin is here to see you ma'am."

Gwen got up from her desk and straightened out her clothes. She walked into the room and saw Evan at the piano practicing. Evan sat down at the grand piano and began to play a slow and beautiful song.

Kevin moved closer to Gwen. "Would he like to dance?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. He wrapped his arms around her waist. The music continued to play.

"I think I've heard this song before," Kevin noted. "Isn't this from that anime—what's-it-called?"

"Gankutsuou," she replied.

"The Count of Monte Cristo, it figures," Kevin looked at her. "Evan took up the piano just so he can learn to play that song?"

" And what's wrong with "We Were Lovers"?" Gwen asked, resting her head on his shoulders as they continued to dance.

"Nothing—it just hits a little too close to home," Kevin held her a little tighter.

"Don't worry, nothing like that will happen to us again. I promise."

The song was over and Gwen was silent for a long time.

"Gwen, just who_ is_ Leroy?" Kevin asked. He knew that Leroy was a well known criminal and he worked for Gwen. But there was something about him that made Kevin uneasy; he just couldn't put his finger on what it was.

Gwen leaned over and whispered something in his ear. His eyes widened in shock.

"No way!" Kevin exclaimed.

Gwen smiled, "Ever since I found out about him I knew he would work for me. He doesn't care that I'm manipulating him, we both have the same goals."

"But the odds of this actually happening in real life are so slim that this is nearly impossible!"

Gwen saw her phone ringing and answered. It was Leroy. "I've made contact with her."

"I see. Is _that_ what you're calling it? And just _what_ are you going to do?" Gwen asked.

"Whatever it takes," Leroy replied.

"You're really _sick_ you know that?" Gwen spat.

"Not like you care," Leroy smirked.

"At least it wasn't my idea; your sick mind came up with it all on your own."

"I will contact you and everything is ready. Don't call back here." She hung up on him.

"He's like Nero or Caligula," Kevin muttered.

"So you did pay attention to the lessons I thought you," Gwen smiled.

"I don't want to talk about him anymore," Kevin whispered in her ear. Evan had left the room and they were alone.

"Good, I don't wanna talk about him anymore either," Gwen pulled him down to her and kissed him.

* * *

Michael Morningstar looked over at Charmcaster as they lay in bed together.

"Why did you ever marry Kevin Levin?" he asked, "I had to wait 16 years while you played housewife with him."

"It was revenge of course, it's not like you didn't have something to do while you were waiting for me."

"Oh yes!" his eyes shine at the memory.

"Did she scream?" Charmcaster asked.

"Every single time," Michael laughed.

They got up and left, going about their day. After she was done she hit the club, hoping to pick up a hot guy. Michael and Charmcaster weren't particularly loyal to each other and they both slept around with other people.

Charmcaster was in a club, spending time by herself with Michael nowhere in sight. She saw a young man saunter up to her with a drink in his hand.

"You look bored," Leroy smirked. "How about a change of scenery? I have a thing for older women."

"I have no interest in you, but I will admit that you're handsome enough," Charmcaster rolled her eyes.

"What does age matter if I can give you a good time?" Leroy moved closer to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I have a boyfriend," Charmcaster said half heartedly.

"He doesn't have to know thing about us, it's not like we'll ever see each other again."

He bent down and kissed her on the mouth. "Let's go somewhere else, I hate crowded places. I'll get my car."

He called Gwen on the phone to tell her he had made contact with Charmcaster. After she had expressed her disgust and hung up on him, he laughed to himself.

"Don't worry, Boss, I'm not doing this for you, I'm doing this for me!" he turned and went back inside.

Kevin looked at Gwen, "You're actually going to condone them sleeping together!"

"I said no such thing! I merely told him about his parentage whenever he does is not my business."

"But it's so disgusting!"

"Merely an aspect of providence punishing them for their sins," Gwen left the room. Kevin followed her.

He saw that Devlin, Kenny, and Evan were watching Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo. It was specifically the episode "The Golden Boy's True Identity". He watched it until the episode was over. He could hear the lyrics on the screen.

"…_You won't see me coming…You won't see me coming…You won't see me coming…'til I strike!"_

Gwen had sent the point home and Evan had gone to bed.

She shut the door behind them. Kevin pressed his lips to hers and he pushed her back onto her bed.

He pressed kisses to her neck and pulled off her clothes. He kissed her neck gently as she began to look away from him.

"Gwen…it's all right, you can look at me," he cupped her face in his hand, gently guiding her gaze back to his.

"I know...it's just...an old reflex. I"m sorry."

"Don't be," he smiled, letting his hands wander over her body. Just for a few minutes, they could act like everything was normal, like they had never been apart. He just wanted to make her feel normal regarding their physical relationship. He pressed himself against her and consummated his need for her.

There union was gentle and loving. They weren't loud, they didn't scream, they never said much, the silence was better for them. Kevin had always hated that Charmcaster was excessively loud in bed, like she wanted the whole world to know that she was having sex. She'd also shouted "fuck!" over and over. God, he hated that. She just _had_ to sound like a horny little slut.

Gwen hated screaming, she'd screamed so much when she was raped, her voice was gone. She equated it with calling for help so after sixteen years of calling for help, she craved the silence, the silence of safety. She could hear Kevin's heavy breathing, feel his warmth and she felt protected when she was with him. She didn't feel sex was dirty or evil or something that could hurt her, but only with Kevin.

"It feels good," she groaned.

"I love you Gwen. I missed you so much," Kevin whispered, he kept moving, keeping a steady rhythm.

"Kevin, please...don't let go of me." Gwen dug her nails into his back, enough to draw blood.

Kevin let her find her release and he joined her soon after, he leaned against her and drifted off to sleep.

Faria walked into the room, he could see his mistress in bed with her lover Kevin Levin. His frame covered most of her body.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Everything is in place as you requested Ma'am," Faria told her.

"At long last, my vengeance has been set into motion!" Gwen clenched her fists. It was time to watch the dominoes fall.


	13. Caught

**Chapter Thirteen: Caught**

Gwen looked over at her sleeping boyfriend, she pulled on a robe and went and took a shower. Getting dressed, she went out to breakfast. Kevin got dressed and found her eating.

"Evan's still sleeping," Gwen looked down at her cereal.

"You didn't have Faria cook," Kevin noted. Usually, her butler cooked food. He joined her and grabbed a bowl of cereal. They ate together in silence.

Kevin put his coat on. "I'll be going now. I'll see you later." He kissed her cheek.

"Not for dinner, I have an appointment," Gwen watched him leave.

She walked out and made her way to her corporate headquarters, Gard Enterprises.

The board meeting was long and tedious, but Gwen put up with all of it, because it was part of her job. She would have preferred to be elsewhere, but she did have to keep up the facade of a normal job.

Faria stood outside the room waiting for her. He had something important to tell her.

"Ma'am, Natalie Tennyson is here to see you," Faria informed her.

"What?" Gwen asked, genuinely surprised.

"She applied for a position here."

She had applied for a job, Gwen had told Ken that she'd take care of her parents, but she realized her mother had taken the initiative this time. Gwen hadn't had the time to arrange anything for her parents.

Gwen walked into the room, wearing her poker face, acting like she didn't know Natalie Tennyson. She steered the conversation away from personal inquiries and kept it strictly business. She had been looking over all the applicants and many of them were shady types who knew who she was and wanted in on her company because of her criminal connections, but Gwen didn't want to hire them because it would arouse too much suspicion and she did want to keep Gard Enterprises separate from the Dollars.

"I think I've made my decision. You're hired," Gwen smiled. "Welcome to Gard Enterprises."

"Just like that? You'll hire me?" Natalie was surprised. This Guinevere Dantes was different than many people she'd interviewed with.

"Yes, you have all the qualifications that I've been looking for. You'll start Monday."

"Thank you so much! Won't you come over to my house for lunch?"

Gwen smiled. "Of course." She didn't have a schedule; it would be nice to see her parent's house again after so long.

She had Faria drop her off at the house and she sent him off to attend to Dollars business. She stopped at her parent's front door and took a deep breath.

Her father answered the door, "I'm Frank Tennyson. Please, come in."

The first thing Gwen noticed was that her parents looked much older than she remembered. Their hair was going gray, and they looked like stress had taken its toll on them. She noticed that there were pictures of her in the house, especially in the living room.

"Is this your daughter?" Gwen asked.

"Yes, that was our Gwendolyn, but she passed away years ago," Frank stared at her.

"I'm sorry," Gwen tried to suppress the surge of emotions inside her. "What happened?"

"The Plumbers accused her of murder. They said they had evidence. As a lawyer, I wanted to represent her in their court, but they wouldn't let me because I was family. It was absolute Hell to sit through that trial. It was a sham, everyone could see it, as a lawyer I was appalled but as her father I was devastated. It was hard on our entire family, but it was especially hard on my daughter's fiancé Kevin Levin."

"When she was alive, I never really approved of her dating that Kevin boy, but after she was falsely accused of murder and sent off to one of those horrible Plumber prisons, her fiancé would come over a visit me, he'd always make sure I was all right. We've become close friends because of how much he meant to my Gwen."

Gwen felt the blood leave her face as her emotions began to overwhelm her. She did her best to give her mother a smile.

"To always have a friend. It's a…wonderful thing," Gwen said quietly.

"You've gone pale, is something wrong?" Natalie asked, staring at Gwen with worry.

"No…Everything is fine, I just…need to excuse myself for a moment." Gwen got up and her mother gave her directions to the bathroom, not that she needed them.

Gwen quickly shut the door and locked it, testing the knob to make sure it couldn't be opened. She reached up and pulled the I.D. mask off her face as tears slid down her cheeks. She buried her face in her hands, and let herself cry.

She washed her face and replaced the mask, composing herself; she made sure to flush the toilet as a cover and walked back out to her parents.

Gwen smiled as they looked at her.

"Are you all right?" Natalie asked.

"Yes, I'm much better now."

They kept talking about business and other things until Gwen decided to leave.

"I'll come again sometime," Gwen smiled as she left.

Gwen went about her business until five o' clock; she had another dinner appointment, and one she was not looking forward to.

Michael greeted her warmly, "We had a dinner appointment at my house."

She went with him and they ate dinner with Charmcaster, Gwen kept her mask of politeness, but in her mind, she was reliving many of the tortures Michael had inflicted on her.

_Gwen was struggling against her captors, trying to get away. Michael and another guard had dragged her out of her cell, they were taking her somewhere. _

"_Oh no, God please, no!" it was a small box, barely any room in it, just enough for her to stand. There were air holes so she could breathe, but she knew her claustrophobia would kick in._

"_NO! No! I don't like tight spaces!" They shoved her inside. She kept screaming, begging to be let out._

"_Isn't it cute?" Michael asked his companion._

"_Yes, it is."_

_After hours of leaving her in there they dragged her out and threw her back into her cell. She fell to the floor and crawled to the corner, she wanted to sleep. She saw something that hadn't been there before, a book; she grabbed it and inspected it with joy, a precious possession that she could treasure._

_Gwen clutched the book in her hand, it was _The Count of Monte Cristo, _she'd done a paper on it a long time ago, and she remembered the story well. The prison escape! It had the answers, the aliens rarely paid attention to what Earthlings read when they brought them books, it was a precious gift, it had been discarded and tossed in her cell by someone looking to get rid of it, someone unfamiliar with anything on Earth to make sense of it all. _

"Dantes had but one resource, which was to break the jug, and with one of the sharp fragments attack the wall. He let the jug fall on the floor, and it broke in pieces."

"_That's it, my salvation, my way of escape!" she had to use this plan, perfectly, to the letter, no mistakes, she couldn't let anyone find this book with her. She hid it in a small hole in the wall, covering it with a small pile of junk._

_She was going to dig, dig her way out of that Incarcecon, she was desperate to escape. She'd be terrified in a small enclosed tunnel, but her terror would be worth her freedom, she just wanted out of the horrible hellhole._

_This went on for 16 years._

_Gwen fell into a restless sleep, she dreamed she was alone, somehow looking out over the Earth, like the pictures she'd seen of space, or when she'd looked down on the Earth with her own eyes during interplanetary travel._

"_Greetings, Gwendolyn Tennyson…" a deep voice spoke to her._

"I…have been taken by Satan into the highest mountain in the earth…" Didn't that Bible story with Jesus go something like this, it was a temple or something like that, she didn't read any of that stuff so she didn't remember.

_Not Satan, Child_," the deep, powerful, and familiar voice echoed in her head. "Diagon."

"The same Diagon who turned everyone into an Esoterica, I don't want to hear what you have to say. Ben destroyed you with the sword Ascalon!"

"_My power will always exist; it does not matter how many times the Diagon is destroyed. I will _always_ come back."_

"Why are you here? What do you want with me?" she asked.

"_Child of earth, what wouldst thou have to make thee adore me?"_

"I don't want _anything_ you could give me, I would never make a deal with the creature that mind raped me!" Gwen stared at him, Charmcaster had destroyed her home dimension giving Diagon souls to resurrect her father, Gwen wasn't going to do anything that stupid.

"_Not even the man that thou loves most?"_ Diagon asked.

Gwen was immediately whisked away, shown an image that was something she had only wished for in her dreams. Kevin in her arms, kissing her, holding her close; she could feel him touching her.

"_I missed you so much!"_ he whispered in her ears. _"So much…"_

"Don't do this to me, don't torment me with what I can't possibly have, I don't have any strength or means to escape!" Gwen wailed.

"_I can bestow my gifts on thee, Child, or didst thou forgetest that fact?" _

"What do I have to do, bow down and worship you?" Gwen smirked, that was in the Bible story; that much she did remember.

"_No, Child, these thoughts of vengeance, it amuses me."_

He terrified her; he also didn't use such archaic speech patterns, could he have known she'd been reading Monte Cristo?

"_The bond you have with my mind has never been severed; I have watched you even when they haven't. I have seen you suffer, when did your family or friends or lover come to save you?"_

"Stop it! Don't say that! They'll find me."

"_No they won't, I will be the one that saves your insignificant life."_

"But why?"

"_It amuses me. What can one vengeance driven being do to exact it? I always viewed humans as base creatures, but you are an exception, Anodite, you wear their form and act like them, but no one sees you as human anymore, you're just another monster in Hell."_

Gwen thought long and hard about this, she'd been in here so long, it had been years since she'd seen sunlight, been outside or breathed in fresh air.

She thought of Evan, he was fifteen years old, all the experiences he would never have if he stayed in here his entire life, she made her decision, she'd make a contract with him. Gwen looked him straight in the face. Long ago looking at him terrified her, but after all she'd been through, he looked like an angel of God to her eyes. He made Cthulhu look like a teddy bear.

"I wish…I wish…to be Providence myself, for I feel that the most beautiful, noblest, most sublime thing in the world is to recompense and punish."

"_You won't ask for my power, what do you want?"_

"Your knowledge," Gwen replied shrewdly. "Knowledge _is_ power."

"_A wise answer, the Diagon is pleased. I will lend you my strength, and in return I will hand you your enemies to do with them whatever you wish!"_

"How do I know that this will happen?"

"_You will have your vengeance against your rapist, that is one thing that you do want, and you will also find me here with you as well."_

"_The only contract you have with me is that your vengeance amuses me while it lasts, and I shall aid you in your endeavor."_

"So all you seriously want is a chuckle out of it? That's too nice for something like you."

"_Eternal boredom, your small dimension has never interested me, but _you _do. My amusement will benefit you greatly, consider my offer carefully, I won't make it again."_

"I accept your contract."

_"All my knowledge is yours!"_

Gwen groaned, screamed, she could feel him invading her mind, but he poured all his knowledge into her, it was like a never ending stream of water, she couldn't absorb it all, she knew all sorts of things about the universe, thousands of years worth of knowledge, but she knew there was no way she would remember it all, but she grasped the knowledge that would help her most, alien tech, the black market, currency, things that she needed, she burned into her memory.

Thank you," Gwen whispered, still wondering if any of it would be true when she woke up.

"_Our agreement has been reached,"_ Diagon said as he disappeared from sight. Gwen woke the next day. It was the day she strangled one of her rapist and Michael had left her alone, a year later, she had escaped with the help of Faria.

Gwen finished her meal with them and turned to leave. Charmcaster came to a halt in her front door when she saw Faria. For a split second, the "Old Man" smiled at her, her knees became wobbly as his eyes flashed a crimson red color.

"The car is ready Ma'am." Gwen left, smirking at Charmcaster's reaction.

"I heard he's the only male Anodite in existence," Michael frowned. "Interesting…"

"That was _not_ an Anodite," Charmcaster shuddered.

"Take me home," Gwen ordered. He drove her back to her house. Kevin was standing inside, waiting for her.

"You went into their house!" Kevin emphasized his words as he gripped her shoulders, concerned.

"I know," Gwen stated it simply.

"You ate dinner with them."

"I don't like it when you're around him."

"I know."

"Is that all you're going to say?"

"No. I feel like I really need a shower. In the worst way possible."

"Okay, I'll leave," Kevin did leave; Ben had given him a call.

"We've got the location of Michael Morningstar's gang the Lightbringers. We've never been able to find their headquarters," Ben looked at him.

"How did we find them?" Kevin asked.

"Someone had infiltrated them from the Dollars," Ben looked at him.

"Oh, I see," Kevin figured it was probably Leroy, he'd been working for Gwen and Kevin hadn't seen him for a month.

The Plumbers gathered outside the warehouse as Ben gave the order to break down the door. They had received news that the entire gang was inside.

"Dude, this is gonna be so awesome!" Kenny whispered to Evan and Devlin.

"Let's just get this over with," Devlin scowled.

"I just want see the look on his face when we arrest him," Evan smirked.

Ben kicked the door in and the Plumbers began clearing the room, returning laser fire as they killed anyone who resisted arrest, this wasn't like the old days, the weapons were deadlier and the no-kill taboo had been lifted by the judges in this matter.

"Michael Morningstar!" Kevin screamed, he ran towards his hated rival, not even using his powers, he grabbed up a crowbar and started whaling on him with it.

The man stumbled, fell and was unable to defend himself against Kevin's enraged barrage.

"I know what you did to Gwen!" he wouldn't act like he didn't know anymore.

"Redheads are screamers, Levin, you should have heard her when she—" Kevin stomped his steel-toed boots into Michael's face, effectively shutting him up. He cuffed him quickly and dragged him to his feet.

"Police brutality, this is police brutality!" he looked at Ben.

"He tripped and fell over," Ben knocked his feet out from under him. "See?" The others nodded.

They dragged him off to the Incarcecon, where they interrogated him, getting a full confession out of him, Kevin was happy to assist with his boots, it certainly did motivate Michael to talk.

Faria was waiting for Kevin outside the interrogation room.

"He told us everything," he nodded at the old man.

"Good, that's what she wants to hear." He sent Gwen a text message. Gwen used a throwaway phone to text Charmcaster's phone. She had just received news about Techadon's Stock Market's crashing; she had planned for it to happen today, Michael's arrest just happened to nicely coincide with it.

Gwen had invited Charmcaster over to her house to discuss business. It was empty except for the two of them.

"I think you have a text," Gwen pointed at Charmcaster's phone.

She looked at it.

_Techadon Stock market crashed, all assets lost._

She was horrified. There was another message.

_Michael Morningstar confessed to raping Gwen Tennyson. Confessed to helping you murder the Magister. The Plumbers are on their way to arrest you._

She brushed past Gwen quickly, catching sight of Leroy.

"You have to help me, I heard you have money, I'm in a bind," she looked at him.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid, I can't give you any money," Leroy smirked.

"But the relationship we have—"

"Doesn't mean a thing to me—Mother!" Leroy spat the word out. He looked over at Gwen, who was grinning like the Joker.

"W—w—what are you talking about, I don't have any kids, you're a lying bastard!"

"Oh, really, I have proof of who I am, my Boss gave me DNA tests, and I know that you're my mother." He let out a derisive, hateful laugh.

Charmcaster paled, she'd slept with her own son, as evil as she was, even she would never dream of doing something that disgusting. If this was made public along with the fact that she'd murdered a Magister, she'd never get out of prison.

She saw the look on Gwen's face, "You!" she gripped Gwen by her shirt. "This was your doing! Who are you really?"

Gwen disappeared from sight. Charmcaster wondered where the woman had run off to when she returned, dressed in clothes exactly like the ones she'd been arrested in on the night of her wedding rehearsal. Her hair pulled back the way she had always worn it, having discarded the wig she'd used as a disguise.

"Charmcaster," she screamed, "of my hundred names I need only tell you one, to overwhelm you! But you guess it now, do you not? –or, rather, you remember it? For, notwithstanding all my sorrows and my tortures, I show you to-day a face which the happiness of revenge makes young again—a face you must often have seen in your dreams since your marriage with Kevin, my betrothed!" Gwen had never felt more elated to quote a book in her entire life, but she had memorized the passage, just to throw it in Charmcaster's face.

The woman's emotional reaction was worth it. Her face became deathly pale as she backed away, using her hands as a shield.

"Gwen Tennyson!" Charmcaster was too terrified for words. She pressed herself against the wall and fled the room; her entire being was shaken to the core. First, the Plumber's had found out about what she'd done, then the revelation of her son, now the astonishing arrival of her hated enemy who had torn apart everything she'd built in a matter of months. It was too much for her to handle. Gwen heard her footsteps receding.

"Faria!" she called. "Fetch my coat!"

He did so immediately; Gwen wore the coal black leather jacket and walked outside towards her car. The wind blew, causing the coat to swirl about like the wings of a bat and she looked like the demon Gankutsuou himself.

"Are you still amused?"

"_Indeed."_

"That was a cute story you made up for me when we first met, I didn't even recognize you the first time I saw you."

"_But you knew it was me, you could sense me despite this form I've taken."_

"Why an old man?" she asked.

"_Child, they always have called me the Great Old One."_

"Faria" stared at her with an amused expression, "_Humans are truly amusing,_" Diagon noted. "_Especially _this _Energy Being."_

"_And that's two_!" she let herself smile.


	14. Consequences

**Chapter Fourteen: Consequences**

"Nemo me impune lacessit," Gwen smirked. Everything was going so well.

Diagon stood behind her serving her a glass of amontillado, along with some beef consommé soup.

"You probably hate playing butler don't you?" Gwen asked the inter-dimensional demon curiously. "I still don't understand why you're helping me."

_"You're asking me why? I did it 'cause I was bored," _Diagon looked at her, _"I'm actually having more fun than I've had in a little while."_

Just how many names do you have and aliases do you have?" Gwen asked.

_"I have existed in many worlds, in one dimension I existed on the island of R'lyeh, in another dimension named Azarath and they called me Skaath, conqueror of two million worlds in my own dimension, in the distant future of another Earth, on the planet Luna, they called me the King of the Cave, in of a dimension barely a blink away, in the country of Japan in the year 2010, they called me a Shinigami."_

"I see," Gwen looked at him. "That is not dead which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even death may die."

His eyes gleamed with dark amusement. He didn't say another word; he turned and left her alone. He left something on the table.

Gwen glanced down at the stack of books, she could see the word "Death" though the other half was obscured by the books on top of it, on one of them, it was down at the bottom. There was also a "Crime Bible", and a "Book of the Black", near the top there was a "Book of Blood", but that wasn't what caught her attention.

"Necronomicon", the word stopped her from even moving. It sent a shiver of unimaginable terror down her spine.

Gwen's entire body began shaking; she knew immediately what she'd gotten herself into. In her research of the Flamekeepers Circle, she'd read something that had seemed eerily familiar. They had been founded in Innsmouth, Massachusetts. They were the Esoteric Order of Diagon, the Esoterica.

"I know too much and the cult still lives," she murmured.

_"Relax, Child,"_ Diagon smiled, _"My followers will not harm you."_

"They tried that already, and you did mind rape me," she scowled.

He let himself grin evilly at her. _"Be glad it was _just_ your mind."_

Gwen jumped to her feet, and slammed him into the wall. She surrounded the creature with her powers.

"What did you just say?!"

He reached out his hand effortlessly crushed her Manna barrier.

_Diagon laughed, "I overpowered your mind because it amused me. It's not like I haven't done that before. I raped a girl once, a member of one of my cults. The child she had was…a nuisance."_

"You're sick! You _know_ what happened to me, and yet you act like what you did isn't wrong!"

Despite his deceptively frail frame, he gripped her shoulders and forced her to meet his gaze through sheer willpower.

_"Human morality means nothing to me as long as I get what I want."_

"Leave me alone!" Gwen couldn't take her eyes of him, even if she wanted to. His form shifted again, taking the form of a handsome, much younger man with golden eyes and leering at her with a malicious, ghastly smile.

_"What did you expect when making a contract with a demon? Now that I've had my fun, I think I'll be leaving for awhile," _he smirked. He released her and chose to change his appearance back to that of an old man.

As an old man, he left the room; Gwen breathed a large sigh of relief. She shook and broke out into a sweat. "I think he scares me." She did recognize half his aliases, she knew he was an evil creature, she wondered if he was going to eat her, considering the fact that it took absorbing his power into Ascalon to stop him, not to mention ramming him with a cruise ship 104 years ago, sending his unearthly kingdom back into the Pacific Ocean. Perhaps the Forever Knights seal wasn't as strong as they thought. Perhaps fragments of him had slipped away to other dimensions.

"I really need a drink," she downed the rest of the amontillado. She didn't want to think about anything for awhile.

* * *

"Rook, I have a bad feeling about this," Ben said, pacing up and down in his personal Plumbers ship the _Alert_.

"Your cousin has returned, she's cleaned out the corruption of the Plumbers and her tormentors have been brought to justice. Sounds like all in a day's work to me."

"It's never that simple, I just have a horrible feeling that there's something else going on here. I just need to find out what it is."

"Do you think she'd tell you if you asked," Rook inquired.

"No, I don't know if she even realizes something else is going on."

Rook hadn't spent a lot of time with Gwen Tennyson since she'd gone off to college before he had started working with Ben. Still, he'd stood by Ben as he had tried to defend his cousin's innocence after she'd been accused of murder and had tried to help Ben clear her name.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," Rook reassured him. He didn't know how wrong he was.

Kevin walked into his house, he'd been puzzled by seeing Charmcaster's purse near the door. Why was she here? He had taken a half day so he could take his son and his friends to a movie.

"Devlin?" Kevin called, "Devlin!" he turned the corner and stared in horror as he saw his ex wife and his son, both on the ground.

His son was convulsing in a seizure, he was struggling to breathe. Kevin was trying to help him, but he didn't know what to do. He felt utter terror overtaking him.

"Charmcaster…Hope, come on, you can't die like this!" he tried to revive her, he might have hated her, but this was too much for him.

He quickly felt for a pulse. He didn't feel any sign of life in Charmcaster. His son was barely alive. He called for a Galvan doctor.

Ben received the signal.

_"Tennyson! Devlin's not breathing; we need to get him on your transport and to the Galvan doctors now!"_

"What? What happened to him?" Ben asked.

_"Charmcaster poisoned him somehow, she's dead, but I think he's still alive!"_

Ben pushed the Alert as fast as it would go; landing in front of Kevin's house, Rook helped Ben move the teen into the ship, hooking him up to life support machines until they could reach Galvan Prime.

Ben flew the ship while Kevin stayed with Devlin. Ben called up Gwen. She teleported herself to the ship and rushed over to Devlin. Ben had notified Evan and Kenny, they had been hanging out together, getting ready to go to the movies with Kevin and Devlin, Gwen had brought them to the ship.

"Kevin…Kevin, what can I do?" Gwen asked.

"I really don't think there's anything you can do," he looked at his son's pale face.

"We're here," Ben said hurriedly. They disembarked quickly, bringing Devlin with them.

Devlin was rushed to the Galvan doctors and they immediately began running tests, asking Kevin questions that he answered as best he could. Devlin wasn't responsive to anything.

They all gathered around his bedside. Azmuth came into the room.

"I am sorry Levin, but your son is dead, even with all our advanced technology, we could not stop the spread of the Cyanide poison. We have investigated and found that he was somehow given the pill in his food. There is nothing we can do for him."

Kevin broke down and began to cry. Kenny and Evan stared in shock, trying to take it all in. Ben put his hand on his best friend's shoulder. Gwen held him against her, feeling her tears slip down her cheeks. To think that Devlin would be taken from him so suddenly, not because of heroism, but through a murder/suicide of his ex wife. Charmcaster couldn't even be brought to justice for her crime because she killed herself.

Kevin entered his now empty house. He felt so lonely. He was always used to seeing Devlin, playing videogames, listening to his iPod, eating a snack or watching a movie. He hated the way he felt and missed his son so much.

He looked down at the kitchen table. 'What's this?"

He found a handwritten note. He recognized Hope's handwriting.

_Kevin,_

_This is her fault, dear Gwendolyn revealed herself to me and took everything I ever had. It's not fair that she gets everything and I have nothing. She has such a perfect life. So I'm going to take it from her and finally drive a knife through your heart. I'm killing myself, and since I can't take you with me, I'll take Devlin, I always hated the little brat as much as I hate you. If you want anyone to blame, blame your beloved Gwendolyn._

_Hope_

Kevin buried his face in his hands and sobbed. This wasn't fair, Devlin hadn't done anything wrong. His body shook with rage. At one point in his life, he'd always admired people who'd gone after revenge, but this was too much, and Gwen was going to answer to him for what she'd inadvertently done. But he would wait until they laid Devlin to rest.

They held his funeral a few days later. His classmates from school came to pay their respects, the entire Tennyson family came and Kevin's mother was devastated at the loss of her grandson.

The rain poured as they buried the teenage hero. Almost everyone had left including Ben. Kevin and Gwen were finally alone.

"Kevin, I'm very sorry."

"You're sorry? All you can say is you're sorry? Devlin was the only good thing in my life, and now he's gone."

"What about me?" Gwen asked gently, trying to find some way to comfort him. "I'll always be here for you."

"You? You're not the Gwen Tennyson I knew, not anymore. At first it was wonderful, your return, your relationship with me, Devlin, Kenny, Ben, but this is too far Gwen, you coerced Hope to kill herself."

"I didn't do that!" Gwen protested. Charmcaster's decision to kill herself wasn't on her hands, that woman was insane and Gwen knew that. She just needed to convince Kevin that she'd only confronted her.

Kevin held up a piece of notebook paper.

"She said in her suicide note that I shouldn't have everything and she has nothing! She took the one thing that mattered to me and destroyed it! All because of you!"

"See, are you well revenged?" Kevin threw the words of that book, the accursed, hated book, the one he had devoured so eagerly to understand her, only to experience a scene ripped straight from it.

Gwen's entire body shook, it wasn't supposed to be like this; this wasn't part of her plans at all. She groaned in agony, she had become Edmond Dantes.

"You _murdered_ my son, Gwen!" Kevin raged. "Your need for vengeance is what caused Hope to lose her mind and kill him and herself! You might as well have killed him with your own hands. You said you loved him like your own son, and where is your grief? I haven't seen you cry even once!"

"I've cried for him, he meant so much to me. Kevin…I'm grieving just like you!" Gwen screamed in his face. He wasn't listening to her anymore.

"You said awhile back that you were the villain of this story, well you weren't wrong about that. The next time we see each other, I will personally arrest you, and drag you back to your Incarcecon cell and lock you there and make sure you _never_ get out again! I didn't think I could hate you as much as I do now! Get out of my sight; _I never want to see you again!_"

The look on Gwen's face was pure anguish, the little piece of her heart that she had left shattered instantly. Everything she'd ever done up until that point was for nothing.

"Please Kevin, listen to me!"

"I'm not listening to you, not anymore. Just go!"

"If that's what you want, fine, I may not kill you Kevin, but I _will_ make you suffer for what you've done to me just now. When I take everything else that's precious to you, you'll be begging for my forgiveness, but all you will receive is eternal suffering! I'm going to enjoy breaking you!"

"And Tennyson thought _I_ could be bad when I went insane," he spat bitterly.

"You'll be sorry, I promise you!" she turned and stalked off. Kevin left without a word.

If Kevin wanted her to be the villain, she'd gladly take up that role. She hadn't exactly been doing anything particularly heroic and she might as well jump off the slippery slope.

She didn't care what she had to do to make him suffer, she would make him taste her suffering and despair, he'd drink it in, and she would break him.

He told Ben what had happened and the man just shook his head. "You've brought this down on yourself. She'll stop at nothing once she wants to do something. I am not getting involved in your personal vendetta; I'm already busy reorganizing the Plumbers."

"Good, because I wouldn't want you in my way!" Kevin seethed.


	15. The Pardon And The Possession

**Chapter Fifteen: The Pardon…and the Possession**

Kevin's life was hell. Gwen had driven away business, he was barely getting by.

He was sitting at home, listlessly staring at his TV when suddenly Gwen appeared before him, dressed salaciously and smirking.

"Cute." Kevin looked at her. "Get out!"

"You know I still love you don't you? If you'd only listen to me…"

"Shut up! I've had enough of listening to you!"

"At least you can't say that I've been unreasonable!" Gwen rushed him, tackling him to the floor. He reversed their position and pinned her down.

"Did you ever love me, really? Ever since you came back from the Null void?"

"Yes, I loved you more than anything, and look how that turned out for me!" the expression on her face was a perpetual sneer.

She kicked him in the chest; his first instinct was to strike back. Gwen wanted to fight, so he obliged her. But Kevin knew she wanted more than fighting.

Kevin kicked her, Gwen managed to block his kicks with her own as she struck him across the face. Kevin absorbed some metal and gripped her arms as he head butted her, sending her staggering backwards.

Kevin tried to knock her feet out from under her as Gwen avoided his leg. She gripped him with her powers and slammed him into the wall from across the room.

He groaned as he tried to get to his feet, but she was on him instantly.

"Gwen…what do you think you're doing?" Kevin demanded.

"I've got you, Kevin, and I don't intend to let you go," Gwen whispered as she pressed her mouth to his in a searing kiss, she jabbed a needle in his back, injecting him with a sedative.

"You…!" he exclaimed, terrified. He could see the lust in her eyes and knew what she wanted. He lost consciousness.

* * *

Kevin awoke with a start and looked around. He realized he was in a bed, and not in his own house, but he knew where he was. He could see her, sitting on a chair beside him.

"Kevin I missed you…" Gwen whispered.

"Stop acting like everything between us is fine, it's not!" Kevin snarled.

"The only thing that's between us Kevin…is clothing," she smiled at him, not her sweet smile, the ghastly kind that sent a chill down his spine.

"Gwen, let me go!" Kevin ordered. She'd bound him with energy cuffs. He glanced around, why was he on her bed? Oh crap, this wasn't going to happen. They didn't have a relationship anymore, physical or emotional.

"This is _not_ going to happen," Kevin scowled.

"Just humor me, Kevin. This is the last time I'll ever ask you for anything," Gwen whispered.

"We're not going to make love, we're just having sex," Kevin smirked. "To think _I_ was the one who was so worried about our physical relationship. Seems you got better now."

"Just enjoy yourself, you just can't admit that you think I'm smokin' hot," Gwen whispered in his ear. "And the cuffs are cute!"

"You're such a slut! I hate you!" Kevin glared. "Get these energy cuffs off me!"

She pulled his pants off instead. His shoes had been taken off while he'd been unconscious.

Gwen reached down and stroked his member. "You like that, Kev? Hmm?"

"No, I hate what you do to me. But you'll get my consent; you'd be a hypocrite otherwise."

Gwen looked thoughtful, yes; it would be hypocritical if she forced him to sleep with her. She gave him a sad look that he didn't notice.

"That's good; I _want_ you to hate me!" Gwen kissed him deeply, she ripped off his shirt, stroking his chest, she removed her clothes, lowering herself onto him with the familiar ease.

"You're still wonderful, Kevin," Gwen groaned.

"The only reason I'm letting you do this, is because of what we used to have."

Gwen released his cuffs and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Yes. We don't love each other anymore, we're just going to have this one night stand, and I'll be long gone in the morning."

She rolled them over so she was beneath him, just like their first time together. Gwen guided him into her, he began moving, not caring if she was comfortable or not, he didn't care what she wanted. She guided him to touch her breasts.

"You can fake this can't you, at least treat me like a nameless fling," she smirked.

"I can't ever fake anything around you," he said bitterly, he didn't care about being gentle with her anymore. He just wanted to get this over with.

"Just hurry up!" Kevin scowled.

"Fine."

Kevin ejaculated quickly, she groaned as she felt her body climax shortly after.

It was over in minutes; Kevin could swear she was trying to cuddle him, as if nothing had changed between them at all.

"Don't cuddle me you slut!" he glared.

Gwen rolled away from him and didn't say a word, Kevin was too exhausted to try to capture her, he drifted off to a dreamless sleep. He awoke the next day to find she'd reconstructed his shirt, but she was gone just like she promised. Even Faria was gone; then again, he hadn't seen the old man for some time.

Gwen let the tears fall, she'd never be with him again, she looked down on the man she loved for so long, the one reason she'd made her deal with Diagon and inwardly seethed, one misunderstanding had torn their delicate relationship apart.

She resisted the urge to kiss him. "We will never meet again."

* * *

Ben heard a knock at the door; he got up and answered it. It was Gwen, and Evan.

"Ben, I need to know if...Evan can stay with you. With what's going on…I hope that you'll keep an eye on him."

"Of course, come on in," he let them in. Gwen told Evan to go see Kenny.

"Ben, I have to leave him with you, until I can call myself fit to be his mother."

"I know you've been viciously attacking Kevin's finances, driving away business, disrupting his work, please stop this. I can't stand to see you two fight."

"This is what has to happen between us, I just don't want Evan involved, he doesn't know I've broken off my relationship with Kevin. Just tell him I'll be gone on business for awhile."

"I'll take care of him, don't worry."

"Thank you and I'll handle anything when it comes to money." Gwen turned and left. That was the last time Ben saw her.

Gwen returned to the Incarcecon and sat inside her old jail cell, she rested her head in her hands, she sighed. This was where Kevin said he'd send her back to with no chance of escape. Of course, she'd never told him exactly where her cell was.

She'd gone too far, she knew that, but there was no turning back now. Her plans hadn't completely fallen through. She could still fix what happened to Devlin, but she had to deal with Michael.

She approached her rapist's cell; she could hear him screaming, his own son torturing him as Giovanni laughed.

"What's the matter, Daddy? Can't take a little pain?!" Giovanni shouted, he broke Michael's legs again as he continued to scream. He beat his father with his fists until they were covered in blood.

"I've had enough fun for today, you have a visitor," Giovanni walked out, leaving Gwen alone with Michael, he was already too weak to move and his hands were bound.

"Do you repent?" Gwen asked in a whisper.

"Of what must I repent?" Michael stammered.

"Of the evil you have done," said the voice.

"Oh, yes; oh, yes, I do indeed repent." Michael whispered hoarsely. A month of unending torment and broken his spirit and his pride. And when a bunch of prisoners ganged up on him and took turns raping him, he finally realized exactly what he'd done to Gwen Tennyson, and became a shell of what he'd been before that.

"Then I forgive you," Gwen said, and stepped into the light.

"Guinevere Dantes!" Michael exclaimed, terrified, what would the leader of the Dollars want with him?

"I can buy you a decent meal, but it will cost you," Gwen offered.

"I'd like some food, how much?"

$50,000 for a sandwich."

"I…I can't afford that. Then at least some water…"

"Water is scarce in the Incarcecon, it'll be at least $25,000." Gwen replied.

"But I'll starve!" Michael exclaimed.

"Then you will suffer hunger," Gwen shrugged.

"Who are you?"

Gwen looked at him.

"I am she whom you sold and dishonored—I am she whose betrothed you prostituted—I am she upon whom you trampled that you might raise yourself to fortune—I am she whom you also condemned to starvation, and who yet forgives you, because she hopes to be forgiven—I am Gwen Tennyson!"

Michael let out a terrified scream and fell to the floor, groaning on his broken knees. Gwen used her powers to heal them, although that in itself was very painful.

"Rise," Gwen looked at him, "Your life is safe; the same good fortune has happened to your accomplices—one is mad, the other dead. Keep the 50,000 dollars you have left–I give them to you."

"But just because I've forgiven you doesn't mean you're going to be free, you will stay here the rest of your life, and I will never see you again." Gwen turned and left the Incarcecon, leaving Michael in a stunned silence.

Gwen made her way home and changed her clothes. She left her house and traveled to Devlin's grave. She broke down and cried for all the grief and bitterness. She sobbed and sobbed, but slowly, something came over her, she was no longer crying. She began laughing, the long, loud bitter, spiteful laughter. She rose up and let a ghastly smile cross her face.

She knew she would regret this decision but there was nothing else she could do.

"You have to help me! I need to bring him back! I will do _anything_ for you if you bring Devlin Levin back to life! _Diagon!_"

She left the graveyard, traveling to the now abandoned Flamekeeper's Circle building.

She drew the magic circle on the ground, preparing to summon the Great Old One.

There was no answer, she recalled the story, the crazed cultists hadn't successfully summoned him, she wasn't going to be that stupid. This wasn't even like the Flamekeeper's Circle where they were trying to break a seal keeping him away from this dimension.

"Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn," she said it simply, without grandeur or even grandstanding, it was almost like a prayer or a wish. She was bound and determined to get his attention, he might ignore cultists, but he wasn't ignoring her.

Gwen stood to her feet, removing something from her pocket. An apple.

She tossed it high above the magic circle. Suddenly, the portal shifted, transformed into water, swirled and opened, an enormous hand, reached out and snatched the fruit.

"_It's just as I thought…Humans are _so_ interesting!"_ he exclaimed.

He rose up out of the water, a monstrosity larger than anything Gwen had ever seen before. His giant black wings were massive and terrifying. The massive tentacles jutted from his face, flailing about on their own. He didn't look too different from Howard Phillip Lovecraft's description of him. He had four gold eyes and stared at her intently, Gwen had to wonder if he was going to kill her or not, she hadn't exactly been excited to summon him.

The Great One shapeshifted and became smaller, shrinking down to the height of the "man" she'd once known. He wore black leather now, his wings still protruded from his back, not bat-like wings, but the wings of some unknown creature, a belt with a skull was around his waist, he tossed the apple up and down in his left hand.

His face was covered in some strange glowing markings, they were a strange violet color and there was a bizarre symbol on his forehead.

Diagon had been away, trying to find something interesting to occupy himself with, since taking over this tiny world had failed, even with his followers' help; now that Gwen Tennyson's vengeance was complete, he didn't have any way to amuse himself. He'd gone off to watch Jesus and Satan play cosmic Xanatos Speed Chess; ironically, it didn't directly involve the girl. It seemed he'd have to leave their game and return to Gwen Tennyson; maybe she'd amuse him again after all.

He'd existed for thousands of years, he was known in many universes by many different names.

After taking over four universes, he'd run into problems when the daughter he'd spawned with a human woman had used her power to banish him from that dimension, going back there might be interesting, but he wanted to see how all this would turn out and see if he could get something out of it in the process.

His next attempt had failed, the power of human forgiveness had caused him to be torn away from his human host, he had hoped to snatch one soul before moving on to conquer that world, it hadn't ended well for him and his human host had died.

He had taken over two more universes before becoming incredibly bored of it all, he looked for something to do that he would find entertaining.

He hadn't been this interesting in anything since January 28, 2010 in a parallel Earth, a rather crapsack Earth as he recalled, it was a brilliant young man he had bestowed some of his power, after exploring that universe's bizarre afterlife, he'd adopted their form and their ways in hopes of finding something interesting to do.

He'd met a high school prodigy who had ambitions that were so far out that he couldn't help but have fun; he decided to stick around to see if this young man could accomplish his lofty goal.

He'd been thoroughly entertained, but the poor sucker had fallen apart once he'd been caught in his game, so he'd moved on, taking over a different universe before arriving on this Earth and being defeated by Ben, Gwen and Kevin.

_ "Cute!"_ Diagon smirked.

"I don't even _like_ that story," she laughed.

_"What do you want?" _

"To make another contract with you." He gazed greedily at the apple and ate it with interest. It seemed his friend was unwell…not that he particularly cared, but it did seem that she would become interesting again. Perhaps, he'd get his chance to take over the world, without that pesky alien hero getting in the way.

He saw in the Child's eyes nothing but loneliness and despair, he hid his glee. He was going to exploit it.

"_My friend. _My friend!" Diagon's voice rang in her ears. He shifted back to the human form she recognized.

He appeared before her once again. He knelt down before her, putting his hands on her shoulders and hugging her like a father comforts a small child.

Gwen looked him in the face, in his true form, with her own eyes. This wasn't like her dream at all. He was far more terrifying. She remembered how she'd gotten sick, just looking at him when she'd seen him in one of Azmuth's flashbacks.

She looked that _thing_, straight in the face and didn't flinch.

"_Though I am bound by the laws of magic, because of the amusement you have given me I will make an exception, I will not require 600,000 souls in exchange for one. _My friend! _My friend. Hope. Grief. Longing. Resignation. Rage. Terror. And then, hope once again. For thousands of years, I have waited. Waited inside this body, for the arrival of someone like you."_

"I don't understand. I don't understand!"

_"Have you not guessed, Child?" _

Gwen realized what he meant, she paled, but she didn't have a choice.

He changed his form the terrifying creature to that of the handsome, golden eyed man with red hair.

"I want you to bring Devlin Levin back to life," she told him.

_"What would you have to offer in return?"_ Diagon asked.

Gwen thought about it, she didn't want anyone to die because of her wish, she knew there wasn't much she could offer, she also knew what he wanted.

"My body, and my soul, in exchange for Devlin Levin's resurrection."

_"The bargain has been made, are you prepared to make payment?"_ Diagon asked, his eyes burned brightly in anticipation. It had been some time since anyone had directly offered him a bargain. She nodded in agreement.

He bent down and kissed her, Gwen didn't know what to do. She was alone and giving into the despair of losing everything she'd worked so hard to get back.

"Shhh," he whispered. _ "This is merely a part of the contract you're making with me."_

"I don't know what to do," Gwen mumbled to herself. This was her despair, she had always planned out everything, sometimes it didn't end well, but nothing this terrible had ever happened before.

All she had left now was this Great Old God of Vengeance. He was seducing her, she knew that, but she didn't care, as long as he would do what she asked of him.

_"I am here; I will _always _be here,"_ he played with her shirt, undoing the buttons.

"Diagon?" Gwen asked.

"_Not Diagon, in this human form, they called me Skaath."_ He pressed his mouth to hers, crushing them hungrily.

He cradled her against him, he'd not indulged in sex in a long time, and she was a beautiful woman he had often eyed in his game of "servitude" to her. Such an entertaining game they played, and he reaped the benefits of it, in more ways than one.

His mouth found its way down to her breast; he gently kissed it, he pulled off her pants and the rest of her clothes while watching her face. Her eyes were shut, He moved between her legs, effortlessly he entered her.

"Just do whatever you want, you perverted incubus," Gwen said in a broken voice, she was used to people using her body for what they wanted. It brought back unpleasant memories.

_"I contemplated possessing _him_ so I could have you, but here you are," _he pressed his lips to her neck.

"_Such an _interesting_ human…_" he murmured. The next few minutes were surprisingly gentle, he didn't love her, demons only feel lust, but she had occupied his boredom, and so for that, he treated her like a lover. Human emotions were strange, was this feeling what these insignificant creatures called…pity?

Shuddering in release, she stared up at him, she'd never dreamed that she'd do this with anyone else, but here she was, with this handsomely disguised eldritch abomination, that was going to have her body as a vessel.

Just because she was done didn't mean he was. She was a beautiful girl, his eyes took in the sight Gwen Tennyson, craving her body, again he drove himself into her, heard her inhale sharply and moan.

"Diagon…"

_"Ah, you still call me by that name,"_ he didn't mind, he was enjoying himself immensely.

She thrashed underneath him, crying out in bliss as she again came down from her orgasmic growled, releasing his seed into her body, he could sense that she wouldn't conceive, he cared not, he relished the gratification of their union. _"Gwendolyn…"_He gently rested on his elbows, tenderly kissing her cheeks and mouth.

_Kevin was right, I really am a slut. _Gwen didn't say another dressed her in her own clothes and she stood to her feet.

"What about Devlin? You promised me."

_"I am very pleased; you've made everything so entertaining! I shall honor our deal." _

The Old God waved his hand and Devlin's body appeared, the small soul of Devlin Levin flew through the air and re-entered his body.

The teenager opened his eyes. "What….happened?"

"You died Devlin, but I found a way to get you back," Gwen put a hand on his shoulder.

"Where's my Old Man?" Devlin asked curiously, and who was this…creature in front of him?

"I'm not on speaking terms with your father anymore Devlin, but please tell him that I always loved him!" She handed him her old Plumber's Badge. "Give this to Kevin, it explains everything."

"Wait, Gwen! Where are you going? Mom? Please don't go!" Devlin called.

Gwen shut her eyes tightly. "You can have your payment now, Diagon, the Great Old One Cthulhu!"

_"The Human Speck is worthy of my soul._ _ Well Gwen, it's been interesting!__"_ The Great Cthulhu stood behind her, spreading his great black wings, covering her entire body. His body seemed to press against hers, and yet, there wasn't any weight. Gwen could feel him sinking into her, infiltrating her soul, opening the doors of her spirit, he was entering into her body in every way possible and he was there to stay.

So this was what it was like to gain the whole world…

_My life is Hell._ Her last coherent thought slipped away into oblivion.

…And lose your soul.

_"I am one with you. And you are one with me."_ The creature's eyes widened, Gwen's eyes were now a strange color, like the color of the frothy sea in the midst of a storm. _"To you, I give my knowledge and my power. And to me, you give your body and your soul!"_


	16. Abominations and Horrors

**Abominations and Horrors**

**_Author's Note:_**_ Sorry for the long wait for another update, and yes, I'm listening to The Call of Cthulhu while writing. Sorry for the year long wait, it's just I had no idea how I wanted this fight to go. This Fanfic is almost over._

* * *

_"In this world, is the destiny of mankind controlled by some transcendental entity or law? Is it like the hand of God hovering above? At least it is true that man has no control, even over his own will."**—Berserk.**_

* * *

"Mom?! Mom!" Devlin called. Gwen Tennyson hovered in the air and vanished from his sight. He held her Plumbers badge in his hand. He didn't know what he should do.

"I don't know what to do!" Devlin clutched his head, "What am I supposed to do?!"

He looked at the badge in his hands; his mother's last request was that he take it to his father. Devlin was so confused. Gwen had told him that he had died and that she'd brought him back to life.

He broke into a run, he didn't have any means of transportation other than his legs; he didn't have any money for a taxi.

His legs were burning, Devlin groaned in pain, but he needed to find his Dad. That thing that had taken over his Mom, he didn't like it; it terrified him down to the core.

He had to find Dad and Uncle Ben; they could stop that thing, whatever _it_ was.

The air burned Devlin's lungs as he turned the corner and ran down the sidewalk and up to the door of his house. He pounded on the door frantically. His father's car was there, he had to be home.

Devlin pounded on the door, he saw it open.

"Go away!" Kevin scowled. "I don't want to buy your—Oh God! Devlin! Devlin!"

He pulled the boy into the house and held him in his arms. "You're alive! You're alive! I love you so much!"

Kevin continued to cry, letting the tears slide down his cheeks. He wiped his eyes and took a deep breath, regained his composure and looked at his son.

"How did you come back?" Kevin stared at his son, in awe of the miracle he saw.

"Mom…she brought me back, dad. She made a deal with this gigantic _thing_ and…she told me to give you this. She said it would explain everything," Devlin handed him Gwen's Plumber badge.

Kevin was shaking, there was only one person Devlin called Mom, and that was Gwen. "My God, what has she done?" he asked himself and he activated the badge.

_"Kevin, I know by the time you watch this, I'll be gone, not my body, but my soul will be lost. I'm making a deal with Diagon, well; you might know him as Cthulhu. I'll give him whatever he wants, if he'll bring Devlin back to life. I'm not stupid like Hope was, and the only person who will die is me. I've seen him, the way he looks at me." _

Kevin saw Gwen visibly shudder. "_I could say I'm pretty desperate. I…I have no other choice. Since you don't want me to be a part of your life, I'll give you what you really want. I know what he'll do to me…it terrifies me in more ways than one, I know I'm probably making a big mistake…but…I want you to be happy." _

Gwen began to cry. Kevin trembled in horror. He could only stare at her image and say nothing.

_"I love you…don't ever forget that. No matter what happened between us, I have and will always love—"_

"How could you do that?! Gwen you moron! You didn't have to! You should have told me!" Kevin shattered her Plumbers badge. He burst into deep, wrenching sobs, burying his face in his hands. His cruel words had driven her away from him; he realized he had selfishly abandoned her when she needed him most.

Kevin felt Devlin touch his shoulder. He met his son's gaze, "Where is she?"

"I don't know, after that thing took over, it disappeared." Devlin shook his head. "I wish I could be more helpful."

"You've been very helpful, son, you've helped me understand what's going on, and I'm glad that she loved you…especially after how I've treated her."

"C'mon Dev, we gotta go see your Uncle Ben, I need to tell him what's happened and we have to save Gwen, before we lose her forever. I lost her once before, and I won't let that happen again."

Devlin nodded, Gwen was the only real mother he'd ever had, and he didn't understand what had happened between them, he hadn't been able to ask her why she didn't speak to his dad anymore, but he wondered if it had to do with him.

They left the house and drove to Ben's headquarters. Devlin looked over at his father.

"Dad, what happened between you and Mom? She said you didn't talk to her anymore."

"Your death, Devlin," Kevin replied. "When you died, it tore me up really bad. It was worse when I found your mother's suicide note blaming Gwen for what she did. I felt it was Gwen's fault for what happened to you…so I told her I didn't want to see her anymore and that I'd arrest her for her criminal activities."

"Dad…you know that Charmcaster did that to me, it didn't have anything to do with Mom."

"It breaks my heart that you call Gwen Mom…" Kevin didn't say anything for awhile.

They arrived at Ben's headquarters, he'd just returned from depositing Doctor Animo in the nearest Incarcecon. Rook was with him. So was Evan.

"Kevin, what—?" Ben came to a halt as he saw Devlin and rushed to embrace his nephew.

Ben didn't say another word; he ran and held his nephew, looking up at Kevin. Evan gave him a hug, he couldn't help it. He had missed his friend so much.

"What happened?" Ben asked, "How did he come back?"

"She made a bargain with Diagon, and he brought Devlin back to life. I don't know what it entailed though," Kevin sighed. "Where would she go? I can't think of any place we could find her."

"I'm not sure," Devlin replied.

"Kevin is my mom…dead?" Evan asked, devastated, he didn't understand what was happening. Kevin explained everything and he was distraught.

"Her body is still here, I think she's inside him somewhere, we can still save her," Kevin reassured him. Kevin couldn't help but feel regret about how they'd parted; he wanted her back, more than anything.

"If Diagon has been resurrected, then he'll gather his followers and try to take over the world again. We should contact Azmuth. I'm going to need Ascalon again."

Kenny arrived and they explained to him what happened and they boarded Ben's ship the Alert and headed off to the see Asmuth on Galvan Prime.

Asmuth arrived at the landing platform to greet them.

"Something is terribly wrong or you wouldn't have come here yourself. What is wrong Tennyson?" Azmuth inquired.

"Diagon has been resurrected; we need you to give us Ascalon," Ben explained.

"And how is it possible that he came back?" Azmuth asked. "You destroyed him."

"Apparently not, Gwen was able to revive him, and Devlin said she disappeared."

"She resurrected Devlin by making a deal with him, this is bad!" Azmuth realized the implications immediately. Gwen was an immensely powerful Anodite and she was also a skilled fighter. Also, with her extensive knowledge of the Plumbers, Diagon could wipe them out sooner rather than later.

"Take the sword Ascalon, do whatever you deem necessary to stop Diagon, he is now a much more dangerous threat than before. I cannot help you anymore than I have, stay safe, Tennyson."

Ben examined Ascalon and returned with the others to the ship. They headed back to Bellwood and Ben looked at Kevin.

"Kevin, you know we have to do whatever it takes to stop him," Ben stated.

"But this is Gwen; this isn't like me where you couldn't see a way to save me. We can get her back! I won't allow you to say anything more."

"I owe you that Kev," Ben sighed. "But how do we get her back? Any bright ideas?"

"She's still in there…somewhere…I know it!" Kevin clenched his fist.

"Haven't you watched Madoka Magica?" Ben asked. "The "I know you're in there somewhere fight" doesn't always work!"

"Call me Base Madoka," Kevin smirked.

"Where do you think she'd go?"

"Out to sea," Ben replied.

"How would you know that?" Kevin asked.

"The island of R'lyeh, Cthulhu will try to raise his home and usher in his reign over the world. Also head to this location: 47°9′S 126°43′W." Kevin stared at him, surprised."I read the Cthulhu mythos," Ben told saw Rook pull up beside him in his ship, "Requesting permission to board, Ben.""Permission granted," Ben replied. Rook boarded the ship and joined them."Any plans Ben?" Rook asked."Only one, stop Diagon and get Gwen back," Ben told his friend."Sounds doable," Rook replied. The _Alert_ continued its journey until Kevin saw it. A lone figure in the middle of the Ocean, he could still sense her Manna, it was Gwen.

_"I WANT GWWEN, GIVE HER BACK!" _Kevin roared, he doubted the creature could hear him.

"Gwendolyn cannot hear you, she is lost to you," Diagon spoke.

Suddenly, Kevin watched in horror as Gwen's skin ripped away, revealing her Anodite form, only to shift and reform into something tall, hideous and monstrous. It towered over them, green, covered in scales and resembled the fabled Krakken. It had six eyes and Kevin vaguely remembered H.P. Lovecraft's story about what Cthulhu looked like.

"No, I don't believe you!" Kevin snapped, he gripped the control of his ship.

"You are a fool not to," he replied.

"Shut up Diagon! The _Alert_ says hello! This should ring a bell!" Ben shouted.

Ben handed Ascalon to Kevin, "It's your turn, you're the only one who can reach Gwen. I'll do what I can to keep him busy."

"You boys stick to the plan," Ben instructed. "Help Kevin get close to her, he'll handle the rest."

The Alert plunged towards the towering creature that had long since discarded Gwen's human form. The occupants dove out and landed on the island.

Cthulhu roared in unexpected pain as the Alert exploded, ripping a hole in its side. It stopped moving.

Kevin gripped Ascalon, coating himself in the armor.

Devlin coated himself in rock and ran forward; Diagon slammed his mighty fists into the boy, sending him back onto the ground.

Evan shieled the group as Rook executed his part in the plan.

"Get the dimensional portal ready, Kevin just needs to distract Gwen long enough for this to work!" Ben ordered.

Kenny, Devlin and Evan all charged forward, constantly moving, keeping him busy, Kenny taking the form of Four-Arms, began hitting him across the face, even though it felt like hitting a brick wall.

Devlin let loose a stream of fire, blinding him momentarily, Evan tried, unsuccessfully, to drain him of his energy.

Diagon knocked all of them aside like flies. They fell onto the island, hitting the ground unconscious.

Ben transformed into Ultimate Swampfire and blasted him with his cold flames. It didn't work.

Suddenly, Kevin charged forward, swinging Ascalon, Diagon blocked the blade, smirking, he tore the armor away from Kevin, gripping him, restraining him from moving.

"Ascalon can no longer harm me!" Diagon sneered, "Out of respect for what you two once shared, I'll let you say goodbye before I rip you apart!"

Diagon shifted back to Gwen's form.

"Gwen, can you hear me, I came to save you!" Kevin stroked her cheek and pulled her closer to him.

"You have to stop me, Kevin, please! I don't want to fight anymore!" Gwen pleaded with him. "Kill me!"

"That's not going to happen!" Kevin replied shaking her.

"It's too late, I have no choice!"

Kevin gripped her shirt, "That's a lie! You've always had a choice! It's all been your choice! You chose to abandon your son and run off! You chose to sell your soul to Diagon, and now you've chosen to give him control! Diagon isn't doing this, Gwen, you are!"

"Is that all you came here for, Kevin? To preach a sermon and lecture me?" She used her powers to form a sword, one that would skewer him in half.

"Any last words, Kevin?" Gwen sneered, preparing to kill him.

"I forgive you," Kevin whispered softly.

Diagon's form began to shred and dissimilate as he screamed in agony. Thwarted again, how could he be thwarted again?!

"Now Rook!" Ben shouted, Rook hit a button in his ship's control, Kevin saw the portal open and Diagon was being dragged into it.

"No, I won't be defeated like this!" Diagon snarled.

Ben smiled, holding up a detonator, "Yes you are!" He tossed the grenade down its throat and it exploded, ripping a hole through Diagon even as he shot back through the inter-dimensional portal.

The explosion began to fade away as Gwen slumped into Kevin's arms.

"Do you then love me?" Gwen asked softly. Kevin smiled, recalling the words of Edmond Dantes, the Count of Monte Cristo.

Gwen smiled, so he had read it after all. "Oh, yes, I do love you! I love you as one loves a father, brother, husband! I love you as my life, for you are the best, the noblest of created beings!"

"This sounds ridiculous when said out loud doesn't it?" Kevin smiled, tears slipping down his cheek, she was back, as herself, as his girl, his sweet Gwen.

She reached up and touched his cheek, "Yes, but it's fitting isn't it?"

"Let it be, then, as you wish, sweet angel; God has sustained me in my struggle with my enemies, and has given me this reward; he will not let me end my triumph in suffering; I wished to punish myself, but he has pardoned me. Love me then, Kevin! Who knows? perhaps your love will make me forget all that I do not wish to remember."

Ben looked over and saw a wonderful sight. It was his best friend, cradling his cousin in his arms.

"Kevin, I'm…" Gwen whispered brokenly.

"Don't say anything else sweet Gwen, just rest, rest. It's okay. I love you. That's all that matters."

* * *

Diagon stood on some inter-dimensional plane, he clenched his fist and cursed his hated enemies. "Stupid fools, a dimensional portal won't stop me from coming back!"

"Hello father, have you given up yet?" a voice asked him.

"Raven!" Diagon snarled.

"So they call you Diagon there, interesting, you are also Cthulhu, Ryuk and Gankutsuou, and my father Trigon, so many times you try to take dimensions, and yet we stop you, consider yourself lucky, they sent you to another dimension, I obliterated you last time."

He turned to glare at her.

"Yes, and it took me a long time to recover from it, don't think I won't come back for your dimension either, because I will."

Raven crossed her arms.

"I am always ready for you whenever you come back, but father, should you return to that dimension, I'll follow you, and I'll finish you, and unlike the heroes of that world, I'll make sure you won't have any way to re-enter that dimension."

Raven looked at him, frowning, "Why did you choose the girl, this Gwen Tennyson?"

"Why, isn't it obvious? She reminds me of you! Controlling her is like controlling you, and it was so much fun!"

Raven slammed her powers through him, "It's not like I couldn't see what you did to that girl! You're still disgusting, manipulating her like you did my mother! You always did enjoy that. I'm not going to make this easy for you. I'm going to put you in the Phantom Zone, and you're not going to bother anyone for a long, long time!"

"You insolent bitch!" he screamed.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Raven opened the portal, flinging Diagon into it.

"Was that really necessary Raven?" Professor Paradox asked.

"Yes, yes it was, Professor," she smiled at the quirky old man.

"Are you going to visit Gwendolyn?" he inquired.

"Not yet, for now, I'm going to let them enjoy their happy ending," Raven smiled, "I'll see you around, Professor." She vanished, returning to her own dimension.

"Huh," Paradox frowned, "What took the Tennyson cousins hours, she did in five minutes. Should have just asked for her help instead," he continued chuckling in amusement. Now that was a fitting ending if he did say so himself.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **We're not done yet everyone!_


End file.
